Enough of the Used Cars!

A new bed for DD fell in our laps this weekend, so we spent part of Sunday afternoon shopping for a mattress set. Not far from our house is "mattress mile," which is a one-mile stretch of a large road with at least 6 or 8 mattress stores on it. It's eerie, really.

One of the stores is a mattress "outet." We like outlets, so we started there. Mr Fancysuit met us at the door with a huge smile. DH said, "We're looking for an inexpensive twin mattress and box spring for her," and pointed at our tiny five-year-old. Mr. Fancysuit grinned even bigger and asked us to follow him to the back of the store. Which we did.

There, along the back wall, was a line of twin mattress sets. All colors, pillow top and regular. First, he tells our kids to "go ahead and jump on them." Which is nice, seeing as this is not a behavior we teach at home. Strike one.

With the kids jumping away, Mr. Fancysuit tells us he can "make a deal" on a set. Translated: the prices on the price tag aren't the real prices. He heads off to conference with his manager saying that he'd hate for us to drive all over town comparing prices with gas the way it is. Strike two.

After a few minutes, he comes back, grinning. "My manager says if you buy this set here [insert patting of mattress] and take it today, I can give it to you for $XXX." We look down. We look at each other. DH says, "When we said 'inexpensive,' we didn't mean the most expensive set you had in the store. Do you understand that?"

STEEEEEERIKE THREE! YOU'RE OUTTA THERE!

We drove across the street. Literally. And 15 minutes later, we drove home with a mattress and box spring that cost *gasp* what the price tag said it cost, and wasn't the most fancy thing in the zip code. The sales guy was low key and helpful, and the deal was simple.

See, there's a reason Saturn caught on so quickly in the early 1990s, and it wasn't because of the high-style of their cars. It was because the sales were straightforward and no-pressure. No haggling. No back-room conferences with higher-ups. Prices are prices, period, amen.

It carries across. I don't want a slimy salesguy scamming me, and neither does anyone I know. I wish all managers would get the hint. The economy would be better for it.

ps--I posted my new Etsy bag on my photo site. I'm so excited!!