On Tue, 26 Feb 2008 10:46:47 -0500, "Bill Kearney"
wrote:

The brick & mortar stores will not match internet pricing.
Then you've apparently never tried. I have, they did.

I have, and they didn't. This is very common with other brick & mortar
retailers
as well. Not just West Marine. I have even had the manager of a West
Marine
argue about honoring a price in an email from West Marine itself! He said
I
could only get that price on the WM website, as his cost on the item (an
igloo 5
day cooler) was the same as the advertised sale price. He finally gave in,
but
not without an arguement.

Sure, I can picture that happening. The times I asked for, and got, the
matching was while shopping for a number of other things, and having been in
the store a number of times. I took the time to get to know the folks
working there, usually by asking for something a bit more complicated than
the usual customer. Works well for getting what you want. I'm fine with
some degree of price premium now and then if it means keeping a local retail
outlet in business. Some folks really, really despise haggling over things.
Me, I don't mind it that much. "If you don't ask, you don't get", a saying
that's served me well over time.

I was hired by one of my client managers once. He had been fishing
for me and one time said something like "might even be a hiring
bonus."
Maybe a year after that I decided to hire on. Got a call from HR with
a salary offer, which was acceptable. Was just about to hang up when
that conversation which vaguely mentioned a bonus came to mind.
It had never come to mind until then, and I wasn't expecting it, but I
figured like you suggest, what's to lose?
So I told the HR woman that Tom had mentioned a bonus.
She said she didn't know anything about that, and would call me back.
She did a bit later, with a 10 grand hiring bonus.
Easiest money I ever made.

--Vic