2 price system

[JesseFrank]

1978... in Paris, about 9.00 am.

We enjoy a coffee in a cafe with seating for 50 or so people overlooking the river Seine. Then the waitress comes around and replaces all the menus.......yes, higher prices on the new menus.

10 minutes later a tour bus group of about 40 people arrive....

5555 universal tourism practices. :-)

Different kind of animal. They use another menu because the tour company want a commission on everything the tourists they bring consume, so they need to raise the price to protect their normal profit margin.

The guy in the market doesn't have to give commission to anyone because he sells to a foreigner.

[crazygreg44]

another problem might arise, if you and the wife live nearby, and you are regular customers to sais market, I would not raise any issues because of 20 Baht more or less . . . I'd seek to give in to the deal, and next time you buy, try to haggle the price down, never loose temper and do this so nobody looses face. If you live nearby, you want to buy on said market in the future, so don't make yourself a fool and learn to give and take.

[JesseFrank]

another problem might arise, if you and the wife live nearby, and you are regular customers to sais market, I would not raise any issues because of 20 Baht more or less . . . I'd seek to give in to the deal, and next time you buy, try to haggle the price down, never loose temper and do this so nobody looses face. If you live nearby, you want to buy on said market in the future, so don't make yourself a fool and learn to give and take.

So in other words, if you catch a thief, don't make him lose face by asking your money back ?

[crazygreg44]

another problem might arise, if you and the wife live nearby, and you are regular customers to sais market, I would not raise any issues because of 20 Baht more or less . . . I'd seek to give in to the deal, and next time you buy, try to haggle the price down, never loose temper and do this so nobody looses face. If you live nearby, you want to buy on said market in the future, so don't make yourself a fool and learn to give and take.

So in other words, if you catch a thief, don't make him lose face by asking your money back ?

you are not a thief when you as a vendor in the market, ask for a specific price. You, the customer, are free to take it or leave it or bargain it. But if you want to come back to said market, to shop for your daily goods, you better start being in good standing with all those vendors

I would think twice if 20 Baht for a kilo of squid , more or less, is worth the risk of being entirely cut off by vendors from shopping on said market. 50 cents? You are always free to bargain. Pay 50 cents more today, haggle down 50 cents tomorrow. But pleeze don't loose faceyourelf ( the OP knew, he spoke of vendor gossip)

Edited June 16, 2014 by crazygreg44

[Seastallion]

another problem might arise, if you and the wife live nearby, and you are regular customers to sais market, I would not raise any issues because of 20 Baht more or less . . . I'd seek to give in to the deal, and next time you buy, try to haggle the price down, never loose temper and do this so nobody looses face. If you live nearby, you want to buy on said market in the future, so don't make yourself a fool and learn to give and take.

So in other words, if you catch a thief, don't make him lose face by asking your money back ?

you are not a thief when you as a vendor in the market, ask for a specific price. You, the customer, are free to take it or leave it or bargain it. But if you want to come back to said market, to shop for your daily goods, you better start being in good standing with all those vendors

I would think twice if 20 Baht for a kilo of squid , more or less, is worth the risk of being entirely cut off by vendors from shopping on said market. 50 cents? You are always free to bargain. Pay 50 cents more today, haggle down 50 cents tomorrow. But pleeze don't loose faceyourelf ( the OP knew, he spoke of vendor gossip)

I appreciate your point Greg, (and will also correct you on a detail; Someone else mentioned vendor gossip, not I....but never mind). The situation was not likely to have got to the point where we were blacklisted, it was exactly how I outlined and no face was lost on either side.

The good news is, I went to a different fresh market this afternoon as I wanted some fish to make gaeng som. Lo and behold, the 2 seafood vendors had a stall there ( 2 vendors, one my wife turned away from, the other I had been checking prices with across the way). I couldn't decide which fish I wanted from the "2nd" vendor, and turned to the other one (the one who wanted to up the price for a farang's wife). She did not greet me, in fact looked away. This told me that she knew damn well why my wife stopped short of buying from her yesterday. She was embarrassed. I did not have the gall to ask her the price of her squid, but as I write this, I wish I had've had. The vendor I bought from (2nd guy) gave me a price exactly the same as his previous customer (I was observing deliberately).

(side issue; "had've had" sounds right to my ears but looks wrong when written. Or am I just under the influence of one too many Sang Soms?)