Negotiating with Art Dealers

[carlito1978]

Any of you have success negotiating down prices from what is listed on art dealers websites? Any tips?

[Simplyrob]

not yet. ive been trying to make a deal on an Invincible cover thats been listed for over a year. ive made a number of nice offers (in my opinion), but, the seller wont budge. go figure. maybe if you made an offer on multiple pieces where the total is much higher, you may have better success.

[MrYac]

I don't buy art much (as anybody who's looked at my gallery can tell you) but I have made offers on a couple of the pieces I do have and it's worked. best tip is don't be a jerk, I know that seems obvious but don't just flat out say "you're overcharging i'll give you (much lower then listed amount)" or something to that effect, say you're interested in the piece and ask if they'd be willing to talk about the price a bit, if they say yes then fire an offer, if they say no then move on

[risingstar]

Depends on the piece, with whom, when, as well as how many pieces you're willing to buy. Because this isn't an industry where you can just order more copies of the product you're selling, sellers generally feel compelled to protect their investment. Also, dealers tend to sell things above market value so that you can't just turn around and sell it yourself the next day.

As a buyer, you really need to be patient and wait for your choice piece, hopefully at a price you can afford. Speaking for myself, I have purchased from both dealers and private collectors and I have ALWAYS felt I got the better deal buying privately -- not even close, in fact.

[carlito1978]

thanks all. im looking at a couple of pieces on kwan's site and one on cool lines art. have heard good things about kwan but was reading that the cool line art folks can be tricky. still several months away before i pull the trigger, but appreciate the feedback.

[J-M-T]

Originally Posted by carlito1978

thanks all. im looking at a couple of pieces on kwan's site and one on cool lines art. have heard good things about kwan but was reading that the cool line art folks can be tricky. still several months away before i pull the trigger, but appreciate the feedback.

Kwan is a cool guy. Talk to him and let him know what you think. He'll try to work it out with you.

[JadeGiant]

I have heard good things about Kwan so I would feel comfortable negotiating with him. Cool Lines, that’s another animal altogether – those guys are notorious for being hard to deal with in terms of getting a reasonable price from them.

[Landroid]

On bigger pieces, I'll negioate with the patron, and if they buy in bulk, definitely as well.