Negotiation (s)kills at Delhi!

Seller : Bolo saab, kyaa chahiye aap ko?
Me : Yeh shoes original nahi lagte, kitne ko hai?
Seller : Aap ko kitne mein chahiye sir?

A guy selling imitation 'NIKI' and 'Reebak' shoes at the, much famed, Gaffar Market in Karol Bagh, Delhi asked me a typical, seemingly nonchalant question. A typical question because no matter what you want to buy, from a handkerchief to an elephant (yes, I am told you can get that too), you will be asked this question everytime. Seemingly nonchalant because of the demeanour of the seller.

This is the mantra of negotiation out here on the streets. They ask you the price that you are willing to pay in an offhand way. This a great way to get know what the customer is willing to pay for. Now, if you quote more than the actual price, he will show that its is lower than he expected but still accept it. If you ask for less than the actual price, he will quote you the price he wants (this is higher than the actual price, so negotiate further). I have been to Delhi too many times before to be fooled, so I do not fall for this trap. I just ignored and looked around until he asked me the question again. This time I asked him the price, but not showing any interest. He thought for a while and quoted some price. But, I was not interested in buying those shoes, so I just walked away.

The seller might not be an MBA from an Ivey league school, but do not be mistaken by his lack of (theoretical) education। He has been trained by the master himself, Life! This has been a great training ground for me too! One of things I learned out here in Delhi was that the emotions you show, the implicit body language plays a very important role, sometimes more important than the words during negotiations

Ok....now I gotta go buy myself a new leather jacket (If you ever happen to got o Delhi, go to the Yashwantpur market, there's a huge building full of shops selling Leather and winter garments). So, catch ya later!