4 ms·

The key to getting good deals at a farmers market is to show up near closing time. The produce has already been picked; it's not like they can take it back and

The key to getting good deals at a farmers market is to show up near closing time. The produce has already been picked; it's not like they can take it back and re-plant it. They will most probably just sell it in bulk to some mom-n-pop grocery store and head back to their farms. So you can score some really nice deals. I did this when I was tight on cash for a month or two and needed to survive on the more bare minimum budget.

Stratoscope 5y ago
> The produce has already been picked; it's not like they can take it back and re-plant it. That is such an insightful comment; thank you! And it's the best kind of negotiating. Not only do you get a good deal, it's a win for the farmer too.
- david38 5y ago
  It’s not. Most of them make very little money. They sell their goods at multiple farmers markets. I know many and they all complain about that rich assholes that do this thinking the food is just going to get thrown away.
  - 1024core 5y ago
    > They sell their goods at multiple farmers markets. Unless they invented some time-travel machine, it's impossible. Most farmers markets around these parts have similar hours: 9AM to 2PM or so. So, if the farmer leaves the market at 2PM, where will they go? No farmers market is open after 2PM. There goes your little theory. Pro-tip: stop treating farmers like children who don't know what they're doing. You city people think you know it all, when in reality, you don't.
    - Stratoscope 5y ago
      You've raised some good points in your comments in this thread. Can you please leave out the insults and adversarial style? We try for respectful and polite conversation here, even when we disagree on something. That way we can learn from each other. From the site guidelines: > Be kind. Don't be snarky. Have curious conversation; don't cross-examine. Please don't fulminate. Please don't sneer, including at the rest of the community. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html Thanks, and I look forward to reading more of your insights!
      - 1024core 5y ago
        No comment on the dude calling me an "asshole"? I hate to say "he started it", but he clearly did. It irritates me when people show up with holier-than-thou attitudes, assuming others don't know what they're talking about (I'm referring to @david38, of course)
shubb 5y ago
This is how I get all my cakes. At the end of the day at a donut or cake stand, most of the goods go in the trash. Even if there is no price flexibility, the employee will often agree to sell you a cake for full price then give you a cake of similar value he was about to put in the trash for free. If they know you always tip and can convince themselves that their employer is also winning, they are highly incentivised to agree. Sometimes people in a job like this will take the un-eaten cakes home, but in the end they can only find a home for so much free cake.
timdiggerm 5y ago
The trick there, of course, is that you have to not want some of the stuff that sells out
david38 5y ago
This is a good way to piss off hard working people who don’t make much. You clearly don’t know anything about how they operate. You do know the vendors go to multiple farmers markets, right? You’re not saving anything from waste. Unless your particular farmers market is the last stop for that vendor, you’ll piss them off.
- 1024core 5y ago
  You know what happens when you ASSUME things? You are ASSUMING that I offered them less money. You are ASSUMING that I somehow forced them to do something they wouldn't do otherwise. Reality is, they themselves offer great deals on whatever is left. No coercion required. And last time I checked, it was a free world: I'm free to take their deal or not, and they're free to offer me one, or not. And by the way: I learnt of this trick from farmers themselves.

Stratoscope 5y ago

> The produce has already been picked; it's not like they can take it back and re-plant it. That is such an insightful comment; thank you! And it's the best kind of negotiating. Not only do you get a good deal, it's a win for the farmer too.

david38 5y ago
It’s not. Most of them make very little money. They sell their goods at multiple farmers markets. I know many and they all complain about that rich assholes that do this thinking the food is just going to get thrown away.
- 1024core 5y ago
  > They sell their goods at multiple farmers markets. Unless they invented some time-travel machine, it's impossible. Most farmers markets around these parts have similar hours: 9AM to 2PM or so. So, if the farmer leaves the market at 2PM, where will they go? No farmers market is open after 2PM. There goes your little theory. Pro-tip: stop treating farmers like children who don't know what they're doing. You city people think you know it all, when in reality, you don't.
  - Stratoscope 5y ago
    You've raised some good points in your comments in this thread. Can you please leave out the insults and adversarial style? We try for respectful and polite conversation here, even when we disagree on something. That way we can learn from each other. From the site guidelines: > Be kind. Don't be snarky. Have curious conversation; don't cross-examine. Please don't fulminate. Please don't sneer, including at the rest of the community. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html Thanks, and I look forward to reading more of your insights!
    - 1024core 5y ago
      No comment on the dude calling me an "asshole"? I hate to say "he started it", but he clearly did. It irritates me when people show up with holier-than-thou attitudes, assuming others don't know what they're talking about (I'm referring to @david38, of course)

shubb 5y ago

This is how I get all my cakes. At the end of the day at a donut or cake stand, most of the goods go in the trash. Even if there is no price flexibility, the employee will often agree to sell you a cake for full price then give you a cake of similar value he was about to put in the trash for free. If they know you always tip and can convince themselves that their employer is also winning, they are highly incentivised to agree. Sometimes people in a job like this will take the un-eaten cakes home, but in the end they can only find a home for so much free cake.

timdiggerm 5y ago

The trick there, of course, is that you have to not want some of the stuff that sells out

david38 5y ago

This is a good way to piss off hard working people who don’t make much. You clearly don’t know anything about how they operate. You do know the vendors go to multiple farmers markets, right? You’re not saving anything from waste. Unless your particular farmers market is the last stop for that vendor, you’ll piss them off.

1024core 5y ago
You know what happens when you ASSUME things? You are ASSUMING that I offered them less money. You are ASSUMING that I somehow forced them to do something they wouldn't do otherwise. Reality is, they themselves offer great deals on whatever is left. No coercion required. And last time I checked, it was a free world: I'm free to take their deal or not, and they're free to offer me one, or not. And by the way: I learnt of this trick from farmers themselves.