Bargaining with vendors

lostsoule77 · November 2010

I'm going to check out my first two receptions sites tomorrow. I'm not a good at haggling and was wondering how far is too far? I don't want to get ripped off, but I don't want to ask too much either? Thanks in advance.

cutiepie12702 · November 2010

We didn't negotiate our starting price per head, because we thought it was fair. We did however get them to give us all the upgrades for half price (although right before we came in to look at the place they told us they had a half off upgrade special running, which had expired by the time we got there....but we asked and they ended up giving it to us anyway, including things that weren't even on their half price list!!). After that, we realized it doesn't hurt to just ask.

Also, if you are having a large wedding you can try to get them to come down on the price per head by guaranteeing a higher number of people - afterall, for them a wedding is all a numbers game. They have a number in their head of how much they want to make...that's why they have a set number of people and a set price per head. If you can guarantee you are going to bring them in more money than they are already looking for, they will be more willing to work with you.

akcrrr · November 2010

We didn't negotiate the per person price either. When we went into each venue we discussed how much we were looking to spend in total and how many guests we were having and got proposals based on what they could fit into that ammount for that number of people.

Most places we went to were willing to work within our budget and try to offer us the best that they could. There were a few places that were firm on their prices but they were never rude about it.

It never hurts to ask...the worst they can do is say no.

Juliet212 · November 2010

We bargained everything... just as cutiepie said - it doens't hurt to ask. We got tons of stuff thrown in, and the price per head was dropped down. We basically got the best package my place had to offer for the price of the lower package plus tons of add ons.

Good luck!!

Reilly626 · November 2010

We negotiated with all vendors, we told the dj what we would pay basically and they agreed. Photographer we got down $700. The Florist (Santos) gave us a discount for paying cash and both being teachers... definitely try... they know the economy is tough and they want to keep your business.

goaliegirl · November 2010

I say try to negotiate everything!! All of the vendors I used negotiated with us, and brought their prices down. At first, I was worried about this, but I just started asking and was successful with every vendor. Even if you are willing to pay what they originally offer, I think you should still try to get it down and save some money.

mbcdefg · November 2010

I would personally hear them out on their suggested price for whatever you're asking for. Maybe it's in-line with what you're thinking.

If you just can't afford that, say, "We love your service/venue and really want to work with you. We can afford $X. What can you do for us to give us that price?"

That might include switching to a less-popular date, taking a scaled-down package, raising your minimum guest count, etc.

And when you tell them what you CAN afford, I would leave a little wiggle room in there for negotiations. If the max you can afford per person is $100, start off at maybe $90 and see what they say.

HobokensFury · November 2010

We were able to get the Sunday price on a Saturday night by agreeing to add on some extras (which we were going to do anyway) so it doesnt hurt to ask!

Peacefield · November 2010

Personally, I'm not a haggler. If I think the price is fair, I pay it; if not, I go somewhere else. I might ask if they can throw things in or will them offer a special price if I buy A, B, and C, but that's about it.

I certainly don't want to overpay, but it gets back to what I think is fair. Since most of what you're purchasing are services (photo, video, limo, flowers, make-up, and just about everything else), I want to make sure no corners are cut and the vendors are anxious to a good job for me. If I want them to be a good supplier, I need to be a good client.

The last thing I want to do is squeeze $'s out of my wedding vendors and have them only give me an 80% result because I negotiated a 20% discount.

No disrespect to the many who do negotiate, of course, just my opinion.

lostsoule77 · November 2010

Thank you all so much! I'm so nervous about this that it's ridiculous! I'm planning on getting married on a Thursday (I know most people'll give me flack on this, but it's my deceased mother's b-day and I already asked my whole family who say it's fine) so I figure that it will be an additional days income anywhere we are getting married. I'm thinking that deserves us some pretty good discounts, just wasn't sure how for to go with it.

Thank you again for the help. We'll see how it goes.

Bargaining with vendors

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