My parents are having their basement finished. It’s nearly done and it’s looking spectacular. What’s even better is that it might end up costing them even less than if they had done it themselves! That’s all thanks the the guy they hired to do the work.
The man couldn’t have come with better recommendations: A friend of mine is a manager at Lowe’s and he personally recommended his services. He’s a nice, outgoing guy with the look of a man who’s done manual labor his whole life. He’s coarse, but lovable. Oh, and he’s about three-quarters nuts – and that’s what makes him so successful.
He calls himself “Pennies on the Dollar” for his knack for ferreting out unimaginable deals. He then passes these deals down to the people who hires him with no markup as long as he gets to do the associated job. Through his wheeling and dealing, I suspect he’s saved my parents more than $6,000 off the cost of materials alone and he’s already saved us nearly $500 on materials for the work he’ll be doing for us next. For example, he secured a stylish water faucet for our basement bathroom for $25. The original price tag on the fixture: $300!
His secret? He’s bold, he’s persistent, he’s patient, and he’s prepared to buy in bulk. And, in following his example, you can be a bit crazy and save a great deal.
Be Bold
You aren’t just given a name like “Pennies on the Dollar,” you have to earn it. This man isn’t afraid to walk into a store and try to make a (seemingly) outrageous deal for his desired purchase, but he doesn’t insult the shopkeeper with ignorant deals. He recently offered five cents a piece for tile that was originally marked at $2/sq. ft. because he knew the store owner wasn’t able to sell the particular product because some of the tile was damaged – but not enough were damaged to prevent him from completing his project. Since he had built up a positive relationship with this owner and the product was otherwise garbage, the owner relented.
Before you purchase anything of significant cost, do your research. If you know exactly how much the item is worth and how much it’s worth to you, you’re in a better position to make an offer. Just because the price tag is marked at $50 doesn’t mean he won’t let it go for less.
Be Persistent
Before landing the deal on the tile, he failed to make a similar deal three times at different stores. But he believed that there was a favorable deal somewhere to be made, so he didn’t settle for any of the counter-offers, even if they sounded decent. He knew that those deals would still be waiting for him when he returned, so there was no point in accepting one without checking out the competition.
Likewise, you can use the competition to your advantage. Even if a deal appears to be solid, you can’t know without checking around. If you’ve done your research, there is no reason to settle for a less-desirable deal without exhausting your other options. And even if you receive an unfavorable counter-offer, that certainly isn’t the end of the line – counter the counter-offer until you come to an agreement.
Be Patient
If he knows that he has time to complete a project and doesn’t need a particular item right away, he’ll start poking around for deals but won’t purchase anything right away. Instead, he’ll peruse the clearance racks, talk with store managers about upcoming sales, and lay the support for his upcoming purchase to be made for the least amount of money possible.
You may not plan on the same timescale as “Pennies” does, but a little patience can save you a great deal, too. Similar items will usually be on sale across different stores at the same time or within a few weeks of each other. If your purchase can wait until an upcoming sale season, hold off on buying anything; and if your purchase can wait even longer, let the item move to clearance before sealing the deal.
Buy In Bulk
To entice the store manager to part with an item for less, he will sometimes promise to buy multiple or even the store’s entire stock of the item. Presently, he maintains three warehouses full of deals he’s made from which he withdraws the necessary stock to complete future projects. I visited one of his warehouses and found eight identical vanities, scores of tools, and at least 28 doors – any of which I could have walked out of there for less than 10% of its original price.
While I wouldn’t recommend buying eight vanities just to get a great deal on the one you need for your bathroom, buying in bulk is a proven way to bring down your unit cost. Sam’s Club and Costco are the most recognizable names when it comes to bulk purchases, but you can engineer your own personal bulk deals. Don’t be afraid to ask for an extra discount if you are prepared to buy multiple of the same item in one trip. For example, if you need 20 power outlets to finish your basement and your home improvement store doesn’t have a contractor pack of that size, inquire with a manager about getting the same unit price (or better) for your 20 as what you would have gotten with the most appropriately-sized contractor pack.
Swing For the Fences
Saving money is easy but you do have to be at least a little crazy to be able to negotiate deals as dramatically as “Pennies on the Dollar.” If you want hit a savings home run, you can’t be afraid to strike out swinging. The worst they can say is “No.” The deals certainly won’t come to you, so be bold and see what kind of deal you can make!
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