thoughts on (asking for) price adjustments.

[justonemore]

Hello Gents,

I was wondering what everyone's thoughts were when it came to price adjustments...By this I mean.....A company has a product on sale....I buy the product...and then the product goes on further sale a bit later...If I am within the standard return period (say ten days), is it unreasonable to come back 8 days later with the unworn item and ask for the lower price? I was sort of justifying it this way

the price of the item was lowered on the 8th ( before the return date of the 10th).

If I went into the store at closing on the 8th... they would provide me a full refund...

If I then return to the store the following morning upon opening on the 9th and said that I changed my mind and wanted the item back...at what price would they sell me the item? The lower price that they are now marked at (and that I know about)? Or the higher price that I had previously paid?

Instead of actually returning them and playing what I consider to be a bit of a game, wouldn't it be better for the client to just ask for and the company to allow the adjustment? Or is such a thing considered uncouth & generally frowned upon? Perhaps I'm just spoiled because most everyone offers best price guarantees in order to avoid the previously mentioned return & rebuy situation? If it were $20-$30 I'd just let it slide but we're talking almost $400 in the situation I'm currently dealing with...

Thanks in advance...

 

[Caustic Man]

Return the item and get your money back. If they are being discounted $400 then it isn't worth it.

 

[RaggedyDandy]

I did this with my tuxedo which I bought last fall. Within a week of purchasing it, the store had a Black Friday 20% discount on everything in the store. I simply took the receipt in and they adjusted it, returning the difference to my credit card.

It may be a different story if it was a final sale, no returns/exchanges, etc., but a reputable store may consider adjusting the price in the interest of good service.

It sounds like your purchase was a straightforward one though, so the adjustment should be a less than 5 minute process with nothing but the receipt.

 

[LA Guy]

You can ask for it, but they would not be wrong to say no.
It is a bit cheap and mean if you know the store doesn't do price adjustments. You did get something, namely, the security of having that item. And you did go into the transaction with full knowledge of their policies.

 

[LA Guy]

When you bought the item, you prevented the retailer from selling it to another customer, is another way to look at it.

 

[Randy Brooks]

For a $400 difference you're well within your rights (and common sense!) to ask for the adjustment. Most reputable stores should accommodate you.

 

[RaggedyDandy]

You can ask for it, but they would not be wrong to say no.
It is a bit cheap and mean if you know the store doesn't do price adjustments. You did get something, namely, the security of having that item. And you did go into the transaction with full knowledge of their policies.

I didn't read in the OP that the store does not do price adjustments. The post simply came across as asking if it was out of line to ask the store to do this. I re-read it, and still have the same impression.

OP did mention the item was "on sale", which may or not mean "on sale" (i.e. discounted) vs. "for sale". An on sale item may have a different result than a regular item.

...[snip]...

If I then return to the store the following morning upon opening on the 9th and said that I changed my mind and wanted the item back...at what price would they sell me the item? The lower price that they are now marked at (and that I know about)? Or the higher price that I had previously paid?

...[snip]...

In this scenario, you have already returned the item - you have your cash, and they have their inventory. Coming back the next day is a whole new transaction completely independent of the previous purchase/return. You would be buying the item at whatever the current price is, as if you had never walked into the store before. This is why most reputable places will simply do a price adjustment - if you are within the time period for a return under their stated policy, there isn't anything they can do to stop you returning it then repurchasing it. A price adjustment just removes a few steps in this process.

 

[Shirtmaven]

if it is a big chain store then sure, no one will bat an eye.
if it is a local Mom and pop, you are still within your rights to do so.
if you are a good customer at the smaller store, then they should do it with out question.

if you are an occasional shopper, they will remember you.
not that that is bad, but the salesman or owner will say to himself "oh that guy he brought back the item for a larger discount."

 

[justonemore]

if it is a big chain store then sure, no one will bat an eye.
if it is a local Mom and pop, you are still within your rights to do so.
if you are a good customer at the smaller store, then they should do it with out question.

if you are an occasional shopper, they will remember you.
not that that is bad, but the salesman or owner will say to himself "oh that guy he brought back the item for a larger discount."

If it was a big chain I wouldn't bat an eye either and i would have just gone ahead and gotten it done...Many of those stores brag about their 30 day price guarantees anyways..but..it's a smaller store that I assume is mom & pop...and that's what makes it difficult for me to really want to push it...I like smaller stores...and use them as often as possible...I just wish it wasn't 400 freakin dollars...

 

[justonemore]

I didn't read in the OP that the store does not do price adjustments. The post simply came across as asking if it was out of line to ask the store to do this. I re-read it, and still have the same impression.

OP did mention the item was "on sale", which may or not mean "on sale" (i.e. discounted) vs. "for sale". An on sale item may have a different result than a regular item.


In this scenario, you have already returned the item - you have your cash, and they have their inventory. Coming back the next day is a whole new transaction completely independent of the previous purchase/return. You would be buying the item at whatever the current price is, as if you had never walked into the store before. This is why most reputable places will simply do a price adjustment - if you are within the time period for a return under their stated policy, there isn't anything they can do to stop you returning it then repurchasing it. A price adjustment just removes a few steps in this process.

To be honest...I don't see anything really listed as to price adjustments one way or the other...This isn't a best price guarantee situation versus a I could return them and rebuy them at the lower cost...as you mentioned...basically a price adjustment with the added actions of returning the item and then repurchasing it at the lower cost.

They were "on-sale" as in discounted....but the store does have an active return policy for discounted goods.

 

[RaggedyDandy]

Don't overthink it. $400 isn't lunch money for most (hell, that's a pair of shoes to go with whatever you've bought), and you're playing within the rules, which have ultimately been set up by the store.

If you want to meet them halfway and you know you'll be buying from them again in the relatively near future (let's say within a year?), ask for the difference in a store credit.

 

[Shirtmaven]

If you like and respect the store,
make the return.
if you can, could you buy at least $100+ of basic things that you can always use.
socks, ties, shirt.
even if these things are also on sale, the store might not feel so beaten up.

they get some money out of inventory sold.

 

[HansderHund]

I personally think that all negotiations should have taken place before you agreed to buy the product. If they had a sale planned, they could have mentioned it in order seal the deal, but they didn't and you still wanted it at the full price. It could also be a case of putting things on sale because, with your sale, they now can. For example, they sold enough at full price and can move it over to a bigger discount. Beyond that, maybe they have odd sizes left and they want to move them.

It is very much a personal decision since you're technically "playing by the rules." Having said that, if you're looking at what other people would do, I would keep the item I purchased. It was worth it to me at the full price and that is the price I agreed to pay. It's funny to imagine, but what if the store owner called you tomorrow and said he undersold that product and would like you to pay another $400?

 

[David Reeves]



if it is a big chain store then sure, no one will bat an eye.
if it is a local Mom and pop, you are still within your rights to do so.
if you are a good customer at the smaller store, then they should do it with out question.

if you are an occasional shopper, they will remember you.
not that that is bad, but the salesman or owner will say to himself "oh that guy he brought back the item for a larger discount."

Thats right Carl,

I think for me if it was a good customer I would tell him or her of the sale and give him the discount ahead of time.

 

[Goodman]

It depends how you look at it. If I ran the store and you were a new or "good" customer I wouldn't hesitate to adjust the price. What I lose in cash I gain in good will and word-of-mouth and (hopefully) customer loyalty. If you routinely do it, at some point they may decide you are not worth doing business with and tell you to take a hike - but that does not sound like the case here. I also agree that it would be a nice gesture to spend some of that refund on an item or two.

FWIW, I have had SA's in larger stores tell me to purchase an item I like now, as a sale is about to start and it might not last long at the discounted price, and just bring the receipt to them and they will adjust it. I've also had very close relationships with owners of mom & pop stores where all purchases were consummated over bottles of Prosecco and the price would be made fair for both parties. Ironically, I only shop the big stores here in NYC when they run sales but prefer shopping at the Mom & Pop's during non sales times so we can hang out, drink, talk, etc.