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We get a ton of calls on a regular basis from customers seeking discount pricing for bulk purchases. In most cases, their definition of a “bulk” purchase and our definition of “bulk” are miles apart. For example, just the other day we had a customer who demanded a “bulk” discount for purchasing 2 items valued at a whopping 40 dollars!
Very rarely though, we get a customer that truly meets our definition of bulk. This particular customer wanted to buy a large quantity of handkerchiefs and demanded a price that we weren’t willing to meet.
Customer: Yes I’m looking to purchase quite a few handkerchiefs and I was wondering if you offer discounts for large purchases?
Me: Why yes we do but it depends on the quantity of handkerchiefs that you need.
Customer: Actually I was looking to purchase around 50.
Me: Actually for just 50 hankies, the best we can do is free shipping.
Customer: Really? That’s it? After all, I’m purchasing 50 dozen here.
Me: Oh 50 dozen! Sorry about that. For those quantities, we can probably offer you 25% percent off including free shipping. May I ask why you are looking to buy so many? Do you run a business?
Customer: Actually, we are looking to sell custom embroidered handkerchiefs for weddings and other special occasions.
Me: Interesting. We do the exact same thing here at our store!
Customer: I’m very aware of that.
** Silence **
Me: (Ok, that was awkward) Ah yes. Well even still, we have no problems selling you blank handkerchiefs for your business.
Customer: I’m sorry but 25% off is not going to cut it. You are way too expensive.
Me: I apologize ma’am, but that is probably the best we can do. Depending on the style you choose, we may be able to do a bit better but not much. Keep in mind that you are receiving free shipping as well. If you take the time to look around, you’ll come to the conclusion that our prices are competitive with other wholesalers in the industry.
Customer: Yes I am aware of that but your prices still just aren’t cutting it. Where did you say you get these handkerchiefs from again?
Me: Well, most of our handkerchiefs come from different manufacturers in Asia.
Customer: Where do you get them from?
Me: Well specifically, we get some of them from China and some of them from India depending on the handkerchief style.
Customer: (Getting audibly frustrated) Who do you get these handkerchiefs from?
Me: Oh, are you worried about the quality? We hand inspect all of the merchandise prior to shipment to ensure that you receive only the highest quality merchandise. We also have a money back guarantee.
Customer: Perhaps, I’m not being clear enough. Who do you buy your handkerchiefs from?
**Silence**
Me: Excuse me?
Customer: Who do you buy your merchandise from?
Me: Our vendors are in Asia ma’am.
Customer: How can I say this more clearly? What is the company in Asia that you purchase your handkerchiefs from?
Me: I apologize ma’am, but we don’t give that information out to customers.
Customer: All I need is an email address or a phone number.
Me: I apologize ma’am. We would be happy to special order these handkerchiefs for you but we respect the privacy of our vendors.
Customer: Well, your prices are not good enough for me to make a profit on my products and I require better pricing.
**Silence**
Customer: Hello?
Me: Let me get this straight and please correct me if I’m wrong. You are planning on opening a shop that competes directly with our online store selling personalized handkerchiefs. You want us to provide you with our rolodex for our vendors in Asia and you want to bypass us altogether and purchase these handkerchiefs directly from the manufacturer.
Customer: Actually I’m just looking for merchandise at the lowest possible prices.
Me: Sorry ma’am but if you are looking to source products for your store, you’ll have to do your own leg work. We would be extremely happy to supply you with blank handkerchiefs for your online store but we will not provide you with information regarding our manufacturers.
Customer: I see. Well you are missing out on a large order here. If you can offer us a better price, we will continue purchasing from you in the future.
Me: Unfortunately, that is the best price that we can offer you at the present time. You might want to contact Walmart to see if they carry handkerchiefs. Perhaps Lee Scott can help you with where they source their items.
Customer:: Oh. What was the name again?
Me: Lee Scott (CEO of Walmart)
Customer:: Thank you, I’ll give them a call.
** Click **
Can you believe this lady had the nerve to ask us for our vendors? She was just looking for the easy way out instead of doing her own research. Did she really expect us to just hand over our rolodex? When will people learn that there are no shortcuts to starting a business?
Not to mention the fact that she came across as a complete mercenary. Even if we met her pricing requirements, would she become a loyal customer? She certainly didn’t come across that way. In retrospect, we were probably better off not having to deal with this lady as a customer at all.
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That is too funny. The opportunity you might have missed was to offer her consulting to start her business at about $250 per hour with a minimum of 20 hours. With of course a “rolodex of industry contacts” at a price of roughly $10,000. Of course, she would have thought it was too much money.
@Andrew
If only I was quicker on my feet, I wish I could have used that one:)
@lol, @amy
For me, I never would have had to gall to ask for vendors so directly. She could’ve at least lied and told me the hankies were for her wedding
@FFB
It does take a lot of guts to ask, so I can kind of give her some credit. But I give her an F for tact.
I cant believe she had the nerves to ask that!
Just unbelievable…..the nerve of some people!
If WalMart stops selling handkerchiefs it’s because you helped this lady put them out of business!! Haha.
Gotta give her credit for asking?
How much of a margin was she looking for? I’m sure whatever you get the product for will still be less than what she would get simply because you are already in business moving a volume of product. What company would give a startup the same price as you? 50 dozen isn’t really that much.
Not surprising to me at all. When I was 17 I worked in a deli. From that job I took away lessons on marketing, small business, and entrepreneurship that I still use today. And my boss was an ogre, but now I understand why.
One day I witnessed a conversation (confrontation?) between my boss and another man, which was very similar to the one you had: the man wanted information on a few of my boss’s vendors, so he could cut my boss out of the loop and start his own business. My boss was polite and professional, but firm in his refusal. The man grew irate, shouted obscenities, and stormed out. My boss went in the back and drank a beer.
I didn’t understand any of this at 17 (I could barely butter a bagel without cutting my thumb). But I believe this is a pretty common scenario, especially with the ‘customer’ (if you want to call them that, but a real customer has respect for your business relationships and your right to profit from them) growing very angry that you won’t do all of the sourcing for their new business venture for free. And I also suspect this: these people have never built a business. If they had, they would understand how long it takes to find vendors you can trust, to nurture and build these kinds of relationships through personal and business crises, etc. If they did, they wouldn’t expect a fellow entrepreneur to hand over this information to anyone who asks for it just to make a few bucks on a large order or because someone promises to ‘order more from you later’.
And I hope that lady reads this.
@James,
You have summarized everything so perfectly with your comment that I have very little to add. From the responses that I have received today, it seems as though this sort of thing happens to a lot of people on a regular basis. Perhaps the recession is exacerbating things.
@Jan
I try to be polite because you never know when someone is going to bad mouth you for no reason. Perhaps this lady will figure it out over time.
@Miranda
That is exactly what I was thinking too!
@Dragos,
Thanks I’m glad you got a good laugh. I thought it was pretty funny too in retrospect.
Great story, you handled it well.
We have all had those customers who are looking for information for free. We have gotten so wrapped up in finding a deal that we have forgotten to show respect for those that work so hard to provide those goods and services.
I loved this!
“Hey, we’d like to compete directly with you. Can you help us destroy you as competition?”
Classic.
Oh, that was sweet
Naivety mixed with nerve, a ready to explode mix! I had my share of that behavior too and in the beginning is really frustrating. But in time it become a source of funny jokes. We even hunted for those type of so-called customers so we can have a good and open laugh.
You can’t really go on nobody’s footsteps but your own.
I enjoyed this, twas fun
Some people are crazy. I’ve come to this conclusion.
I have to wonder what she must have been thinking to call up and demand that you give her your business?
It’s too bad there are so many of these people in the world. I’d say it was almost excusable until she made it clear that she knew what she was doing and she was being malicious.
@Elle
You know? I’m curious as to what percentage of people actually give her their vendor information. I wouldn’t be surprised if her tactics work some of the time. I don’t think she was being malicious so much as being naive.
@Jeremy
Thanks for having my back:) I wasn’t really mad when this call happened. I was more in disbelief that someone would have to gall to ask these questions. I am curious to see if her shop ever launched. Haven’t noticed any new competitors lately.
Hi Steve,
I get mad just reading this. Especially because I know how hard you worked to set everything up, and how much you invested in traveling to Asia to meet the vendors personally. I bet this same person wouldn’t even be willing to fly to Asia. They would just make another phone call! haha. Some people….
Cheers,
Jeremy
Wow Steve, that’s kind of scary and quite annoying, if you ask me. I think you did the right thing, and sometimes we just need to stand our ground. I think a lot of these things are awkward, especially if you’re over the phone, and trying to calm people down. Wow.
that’s crazy. compare that to a message I just got today (they are worlds apart):
******
Hello Derek,
Thank you for providing me with your e-mail.
By the way, my real name is Bob.
Yes, I’m very impressed with your operation. I discovered it because you visited my stumbleupon page… I checked out your profile and clicked on your link.
You’re actually not going to believe this, but I was in the planning stages of making a site with pretty much the same exact approach: To build a community of people… that could help each other stay motivated to overcome their personal demons.
As you can imagine, I was pretty shocked when I discovered your site.
Only a little while ago was I pitching my idea to John of *anonymoussite*.com; I was asking him to partner up with me on this project. In fact, I own a domain name that I was going to use for it.
Nevertheless… it looks like you beat me to it! Well, good for you. It’s a great idea and I really do think you have a good shot at being very successful. Here’s why: you’re fulfilling a real human need.
I still may go through with making my site who’s approach is very similar to yours, so don’t be surprised if you find yourself with a bit of competition down the road
That being said, I wish you ultimate success. And I believe you’re truly doing a service for humanity with Nuhabits. I hope you succeed.
I look forward to seeing how your wonderful site unfolds.
Warm regards,
Bob
*********
Pretty cool huh?
I’m amazed that you didn’t lose your cool. I would have banged the receiver. Enjoyed the write-up. As usual.
Who do you buy your handkerchiefs from?
That call was handled to perfection.
Many Blessings….
Hugo and Roxanne
~Believe Achieve~
I have nothing to say..
Kudos to you for directing her to the CEO of Walmart. I wish her all the best! 
Or perhaps it is time for you to become a franchisor.
@Wayne @Jon
LOL, I didn’t realize that the man had retired:) He’d been there for quite awhile.
@Shea
Thanks buddy. I think Live Chat would make a great addition. Just need to prioritize and carve out some time to do the research.
Wow, that is absolutely unbelievable (and hilarious)! Perhaps she’ll feel mislead when she finds out Lee Scott just retired.
You should let her know that she should fly over to China and India to attend their trade fairs. And source the items from the many contacts there.
lol.. thank you for sharing.. as we are just getting all our stuff ready to launch our online store.. i am reading all of your tips and advise and things you did wrong, and what you liked and did not.. and it is all so priceless – thank you so much for sharing and have been reading for hours and loving all the details. thank you both and wish you an increase of double last year!
fiona
That’s crazy..but you meet all types of people when you run a business. But do find something to be true. It seems that the ones who ask for a whole lot are usually the ones that can’t (or won’t) spend the money for it. :/
But I would love to see them try to get in touch with Lee Scott. Obviously they didn’t know who that was.
I’m not sure why this is so surprising. We have a free-market economy that is great! The competition in our markets drives our entire system. We explicitly forbid monopolies, so it’s not really a big deal that she was searching out how to compete. Not to mention, maybe she was doing her leg work by calling you? Bet now one thought of that one? If your prices had been low enough you would have been her supplier, but when they weren’t she was asking for information regarding other places to go…The last I checked that IS leg work, the fact that your company is trying to decrease competition to keep higher prices shows that you all are asses, not the customer. It’s all part of the market though, but given the conversation and how many times the caller had to repeat herself when asking who you brought your products from, I must say the intelligence is not on your company’s side, and the inability to handle this (needing to blog it) also shows a whole other lack of professionalism.
Actually, it’s good to read the stuff on here – getting a different perspective on a conversation I had with a marketing manager of Limelight Networks the other day.
As most things, there’s always a difference in perception between the caller and the callee …