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Bargain Fever : Our Obsession With Getting More for Less
A spirited investigation into the phenomenon of bargain hunting, now bigger than ever.
When Coca-Cola offered the first retail coupon in the 1880s customers were thrilled. But today's shoppers, plugged into Gilt Groupe, RueLaLa, and Living Social, see sales and discounts as the norm, not the exception. The relentless pursuit of deals has totally changed the relationship between buyers and sellers.
In this playful, well-researched book, journalist Mark Ellwood takes readers deep into the discount game, both high end and low. From the haggling markets of Istanbul to Black Friday in a suburban mall, to pinnacles of global luxury such as Hermès and Louis Vuitton, companies and consumers are engaged in a constant game of cat and mouse. Some companies now change their prices literally second by second. Consumers, for their part, turn to coupon apps and strategic Twitter analysis to find great bargains.
Today's unorthodox tactics range from “secret” sales for frequent shoppers to brands going so far as to destroy unsold merchandise rather than slash prices. Ellwood offers fascinating insights into the twisted economy of bargain hunting, with more than a few shopping tips for readers.
When Coca-Cola offered the first retail coupon in the 1880s customers were thrilled. But today's shoppers, plugged into Gilt Groupe, RueLaLa, and Living Social, see sales and discounts as the norm, not the exception. The relentless pursuit of deals has totally changed the relationship between buyers and sellers.
In this playful, well-researched book, journalist Mark Ellwood takes readers deep into the discount game, both high end and low. From the haggling markets of Istanbul to Black Friday in a suburban mall, to pinnacles of global luxury such as Hermès and Louis Vuitton, companies and consumers are engaged in a constant game of cat and mouse. Some companies now change their prices literally second by second. Consumers, for their part, turn to coupon apps and strategic Twitter analysis to find great bargains.
Today's unorthodox tactics range from “secret” sales for frequent shoppers to brands going so far as to destroy unsold merchandise rather than slash prices. Ellwood offers fascinating insights into the twisted economy of bargain hunting, with more than a few shopping tips for readers.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published August 29, 2013
11 people are currently reading
477 people want to read
About the author
Mark Ellwood
1 book7 followersBritish-born, New York-based Mark Ellwood has lived out of a suitcase for most of his life.
After studying for an undergraduate degree in English Literature at Cambridge University in England and a Masters on a scholarship to the University of Chicago, he spent several years as a tour director leading art tours around cities like Florence, Rome and Paris. After college, Mark moved to New York to become a print and broadcast journalist, specializing in luxury goods: travel, fashion and contemporary art.
He has written regularly for the Financial Times Weekend and How To Spend It Magazine, T: New York Times style magazine, Wall Street Journal Weekend, Bloomberg Business Week and Departures among others. He has interviewed the world's oldest supermodel (she's 75 and counting), trekked to a $10bn art island in rural Japan that looked like a Bond villain's lair (he brought his own white cat) spent a weekend in an all-psychic town (and yes, they did know he was coming because he called) and confirmed where & when men first slipped into a speedo (Sydney, 1961).
Ellwood's new book Bargain Fever: How to Shop in a Discounted World will be published by Penguin-Portfolio on October 17 2013. In this book, he examines our culture's newfound obsession with deals, discounts and never paying full price (like the unadvertised discount savvy shoppers can wrestle out of Prada staff with a few choice words or the woman who earns more than a $1m a year reselling coupons).
As a host and producer, Ellwood was one of the longtime onscreen talents for luxury network Plum TV. He hosted Plum's first ever travel show, Local Currency: Mark hopscotches around Europe learning from residents of cities like Amsterdam and Vienna what it takes to pass for a local and then testing out the tips first hand with a hidden camera chronicling every one of his bungled mistakes. As a correspondent for the weekly lifestyle show Plum Daily in its key markets from Miami Beach and Aspen to the Hamptons, he wrangled interviews with everyone from Calvin Klein and Alison Janney to Russell Simmons and Mario Batali. Ellwood learned how to play croquet from a pro (yes, they exist) and spent a Thursday evening at the Manhattan offices of some upscale dermatologists who cater to last minute gala-goers in need of pre-Hamptons Botox and fillers. Mark also hosted and produced live special coverage of splashy events from Art Basel Miami Beach to Aspen's Food + Wine festival.
Favorite assignments have included hitting the nightclubs of Maputo in Mozambique with Europe's twentysomething jetset, watching the cowboy poets of Wyoming rap by the campfire, and judging the finer points of vodka-swigging at the cocktail set's answer to Miss World in New Zealand. He's also spent a weekend trawling through the menswear stores of Tokyo trying to find something large enough to fit.
After studying for an undergraduate degree in English Literature at Cambridge University in England and a Masters on a scholarship to the University of Chicago, he spent several years as a tour director leading art tours around cities like Florence, Rome and Paris. After college, Mark moved to New York to become a print and broadcast journalist, specializing in luxury goods: travel, fashion and contemporary art.
He has written regularly for the Financial Times Weekend and How To Spend It Magazine, T: New York Times style magazine, Wall Street Journal Weekend, Bloomberg Business Week and Departures among others. He has interviewed the world's oldest supermodel (she's 75 and counting), trekked to a $10bn art island in rural Japan that looked like a Bond villain's lair (he brought his own white cat) spent a weekend in an all-psychic town (and yes, they did know he was coming because he called) and confirmed where & when men first slipped into a speedo (Sydney, 1961).
Ellwood's new book Bargain Fever: How to Shop in a Discounted World will be published by Penguin-Portfolio on October 17 2013. In this book, he examines our culture's newfound obsession with deals, discounts and never paying full price (like the unadvertised discount savvy shoppers can wrestle out of Prada staff with a few choice words or the woman who earns more than a $1m a year reselling coupons).
As a host and producer, Ellwood was one of the longtime onscreen talents for luxury network Plum TV. He hosted Plum's first ever travel show, Local Currency: Mark hopscotches around Europe learning from residents of cities like Amsterdam and Vienna what it takes to pass for a local and then testing out the tips first hand with a hidden camera chronicling every one of his bungled mistakes. As a correspondent for the weekly lifestyle show Plum Daily in its key markets from Miami Beach and Aspen to the Hamptons, he wrangled interviews with everyone from Calvin Klein and Alison Janney to Russell Simmons and Mario Batali. Ellwood learned how to play croquet from a pro (yes, they exist) and spent a Thursday evening at the Manhattan offices of some upscale dermatologists who cater to last minute gala-goers in need of pre-Hamptons Botox and fillers. Mark also hosted and produced live special coverage of splashy events from Art Basel Miami Beach to Aspen's Food + Wine festival.
Favorite assignments have included hitting the nightclubs of Maputo in Mozambique with Europe's twentysomething jetset, watching the cowboy poets of Wyoming rap by the campfire, and judging the finer points of vodka-swigging at the cocktail set's answer to Miss World in New Zealand. He's also spent a weekend trawling through the menswear stores of Tokyo trying to find something large enough to fit.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
May 7, 2014
Bargain Fever is a fascinating book about marketing practices, but it does not delve deeply into trying to understand consumerism, looking no further than dopamine to understand our drive to buy. Even as he unveils a staggering variety of pricing gimmicks from reference points to versioning, Ellwood tries to advance the thesis that under “shopping 3.0” there has never been a better time to be a buyer, largely due to the transparency afforded by the internet. What was clearest to me, however, was the constant tension between shoppers demanding a deal, and retailers trying to turn a profit. Ellwood has a good eye for interesting topics from extreme couponing to outlet malls to data mining, but draws overly optimistic conclusions about how the current system empowers buyers. However, the content is engrossing, even when the presentation is hampered by a thesis not borne out by the evidence. read more...
November 23, 2013
There was a lot of great information in this book regarding Groupon, hotels and travel discounts. There is a new wave a savers and the craze has created almost a whole new sector of the population. This book gives the history and information in a well researched book about bargain fever. The book, at times, was slow to me....I ended up skimming through some parts.
I thought this would be a how-to book, but it turned out to be more about the craze of bargain fever and not a go to guide on saving big. I found it interesting however....with the craze producing shows, websites and the such. Worth the read for the die hard shopper 3.0 stars.
I thought this would be a how-to book, but it turned out to be more about the craze of bargain fever and not a go to guide on saving big. I found it interesting however....with the craze producing shows, websites and the such. Worth the read for the die hard shopper 3.0 stars.
November 11, 2017
This was a interesting discussion of mainly the retail trade. How everything is driven by profits on Wall St. and lowest cost manufacturing. The markup on product is huge which is why so much stuff is sold at discount. Nobody pays full price any more except for own label stuff like Apple, Trader Joe product and Target own. etc.
January 19, 2023
The subtitle of this book is very deceiving. I thought I was going to “learn how to shop in a discounted world.” All I learned was a bunch of strategies that different shops use to get customers to buy their products. I kept reading hoping the book would get better. It did not. Waste of my time.
March 5, 2017
An interesting read. The author seems to really know his stuff, but he tends to drag on his points. The book is mainly written for US perspective
March 17, 2014
I thought I was going to like this book more than I actually did. I read a few other reviews that said the book dragged as it went along and the first few chapters were the best, which I definitely agree with. I really enjoyed the chapter about coupons and how that whole thing got started. It was also interesting to learn that the very first coupon EVER was for a free Coca-Cola to get people to try the new drink. There was also some interesting information about how sales and discounts affect our brain. I can say from experience that saving a lot of money by combining coupons and sales IS like a high. There was also some stuff about why high-end fakes (mostly purses) is such a huge problem. Overall, I thought the book was VERY wordy and detailed and a lot of it was information I just wasn't super interested in. There were some interesting facts, but I don't think I would recommend it to anyone.
A few quotes I did like:
"Supermarkets after World War II stocked an average of 3,750 items; by the end of the twentieth century that number had increased more than tenfold, to 45,000. In 1994, the total of UPCs for consumer products - in other words, things that could be sold at a store by scanning them - was just over five hundred thousand. Less than ten years later, it had reached almost seven hundred thousand. In 1980, there were six major blue jeans brands in America; thirty years on, that number was eight hundred and climbing. We have enough excess possessions to birth not just a TV show about self-storage but also a booming industry. In 2012, there were 2.3 billion square feet of storage space in this country, and more added since. One in ten US households was renting some kind of unit, an increase of 65 percent since the late 1990's." (p. 6)
"To celebrate [American Girl dolls] twenty-fifth anniversary, the firm teamed up with Celebrity cruises to offer a week-long trip to the Caribbean aimed at American Girl fans. The package included cooking classes, chats with authors of some of the books, and a giant birthday party. The ship sold out in forty-eight hours." (p. 157) - this is some craziness! A week cruise aimed at 8-10 year old girls?! Wow.
A few quotes I did like:
"Supermarkets after World War II stocked an average of 3,750 items; by the end of the twentieth century that number had increased more than tenfold, to 45,000. In 1994, the total of UPCs for consumer products - in other words, things that could be sold at a store by scanning them - was just over five hundred thousand. Less than ten years later, it had reached almost seven hundred thousand. In 1980, there were six major blue jeans brands in America; thirty years on, that number was eight hundred and climbing. We have enough excess possessions to birth not just a TV show about self-storage but also a booming industry. In 2012, there were 2.3 billion square feet of storage space in this country, and more added since. One in ten US households was renting some kind of unit, an increase of 65 percent since the late 1990's." (p. 6)
"To celebrate [American Girl dolls] twenty-fifth anniversary, the firm teamed up with Celebrity cruises to offer a week-long trip to the Caribbean aimed at American Girl fans. The package included cooking classes, chats with authors of some of the books, and a giant birthday party. The ship sold out in forty-eight hours." (p. 157) - this is some craziness! A week cruise aimed at 8-10 year old girls?! Wow.
April 17, 2014
As a person who eschews full price, I thought this was a fascinating read on discounting in all its forms: coupons, sales, outlet malls, group buying, etc. The book definitely has a US perspective and I live in Canada, a place where coupons don't double down and outlet malls are few and far between. Things that appear in the US take longer to trickle on over to Canada, but eventually we get our own version. We didn't get to shop on Gilt (at least from what I recall), but we got access to sites like Hautelook and Beyondtherack which offered similar flash sales on "luxury" goods. The concept blew my mind and I was browsing and adding items to my basket like it was going out of style (and it probably was), although I could never bring myself to actually checkout. 70% off! 80% off! How could I resist? Then collective buying became the new It Girl. We had Groupon and Teambuy screaming that we could get goods and services valued at $300 for a mere $25! I was getting a dozen emails a day for questionable discounted spa services. As time wore on, most of what was on offer became junk. The new deal every day model was just not sustainable. Consumer appetite far outstripped supply. And it's not hard to understand why. Sales and discounts were designed to move excess merchandise quickly. But when you're expected to provide daily deals and there's no excess merchandise, you end up fabricating them to meet demand. Not unlike what outlet malls do. In a nutshell, whether you work in retail or simply love shopping, this book offers a lot of interesting stories on the strategies used by stores to get you to open your wallet, the people who came up with these ideas, and the ways others are exploiting them.
January 5, 2014
The title on the copy of this book that I got from the library is "Bargain Fever: How to Shop in a Discounted World," which is both misleading and unfortunate.
Although there is a focus on attaining access to cut-rate, high-end womens' accessories and clothing in the first chapters (which is as unappealing and foreign to me as an episode of Sex In The City), bargain hunters looking for new ways to score a deal will probably end up frustrated with this book. This is not a book about how to shop or get discounts. This is a behind the scenes / history of retail. And it's interesting as hell--IF you're interested in the inner workings of retail.
Why are there coupons?
Why do some products end in .99 and others in .88 and still others in .00?
Why do some sale tags list the "retail price" while others list "retail value?"
Are outlet malls REALLY giving you a discount or selling you made-for-outlet goods?
Will people give up choice for price?
Why do citizens of some countries always expect discounts while others willingly seek out full price?
These questions and more are answered in a fast read that gives a better understanding of the retail environment from an biological standpoint all the way up to the global 30,000 foot view of the changing retail landscape. But, (thankfully) this is not a book about how to get a bargain.
Although there is a focus on attaining access to cut-rate, high-end womens' accessories and clothing in the first chapters (which is as unappealing and foreign to me as an episode of Sex In The City), bargain hunters looking for new ways to score a deal will probably end up frustrated with this book. This is not a book about how to shop or get discounts. This is a behind the scenes / history of retail. And it's interesting as hell--IF you're interested in the inner workings of retail.
Why are there coupons?
Why do some products end in .99 and others in .88 and still others in .00?
Why do some sale tags list the "retail price" while others list "retail value?"
Are outlet malls REALLY giving you a discount or selling you made-for-outlet goods?
Will people give up choice for price?
Why do citizens of some countries always expect discounts while others willingly seek out full price?
These questions and more are answered in a fast read that gives a better understanding of the retail environment from an biological standpoint all the way up to the global 30,000 foot view of the changing retail landscape. But, (thankfully) this is not a book about how to get a bargain.
July 25, 2014
To start with, as many others have noted, the (original?) subtitle of this book is quite misleading. I see that the subtitle on Goodreads has now changed from "How to Shop in a Discounted World" to "Our Obsession with Getting More for Less," which is certainly more accurate, so perhaps they've changed it in response to the criticism. Certainly there is no "how-to" information in this book, so readers who pick it up for that purpose are bound to be disappointed.
Unfortunately, that's not the only problem with this book. Again, I echo other reviewer's sentiments that the first couple of chapters are relatively interesting, but that the book significantly loses steam the further it goes along. Worse than that, though, is the author's overblown writing style. Ellwood repeats certain phraseology to the point of annoyance, (e.g. made-up words like "Spenderellas" and descriptors like "more ______ than ______" -- for example, "more Taylor Swift than tailor-made," whatever that means.) At one point, he refers to a coupon fraudster as "an economic Osama bin Laden." Um... what? You're comparing someone who makes fake coupons to the most notorious terrorist of our time? Riiiiight...
Personally, I abandoned this book after about 100 pages.
Unfortunately, that's not the only problem with this book. Again, I echo other reviewer's sentiments that the first couple of chapters are relatively interesting, but that the book significantly loses steam the further it goes along. Worse than that, though, is the author's overblown writing style. Ellwood repeats certain phraseology to the point of annoyance, (e.g. made-up words like "Spenderellas" and descriptors like "more ______ than ______" -- for example, "more Taylor Swift than tailor-made," whatever that means.) At one point, he refers to a coupon fraudster as "an economic Osama bin Laden." Um... what? You're comparing someone who makes fake coupons to the most notorious terrorist of our time? Riiiiight...
Personally, I abandoned this book after about 100 pages.
January 25, 2014
I bought this book after I saw the author interviewed on the Today show. The interview has a lot of useful information so I thought the book would go in to more detail. As an avid shopper, I love to get a bargain but I have noticed that many stores these days are all about 40% off every day, etc., etc. This book explains that mentality along with the history of the department store, bargain basement, price tag and coupons. I found all this information VERY interesting. I also shop at almost all of the stores mentioned in the book whether brick and morter or via the web. I have also done some "showrooming" and scanning in the store to find a better price. I was really fascinated by this book and not at all bored. I am familiar with all the brands mentioned and thought the sections about the four brands that do not have sales very informative. In order, to make the most sense out of this book, it helps very much if you have a knowledge of past and current cultural icons in order to fully appreciate what the author means. Over all, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely use the tips and websites mentioned.
July 29, 2015
SHOCKED by how much I loved and learned from this book.
Expected to read this book and learn how to save money by taking advantage of discounts and bargains and not get screwed over. While there's a little of that (apparently make sure to clear your cookies if you are "shopping around" online) this book is way more than that and you'll open the lid on a whole stealthy and secretive world you never realized existed.
Learned that coupon fraud is a major crime that makes sketchy people thousands of dollars. Learned there are plenty of sales that luxury brands think aren't good enough for me. Confirmed what I already knew about Ann Taylor Outlet mostly having products they don't sell in their actual stores, though I like those clothes the best anyway. Know who sold the first coupons ever? You will after you read this book.
Also had some deeper discussions about how ideas of social strata relate to willingness to bargain and how the changing global economy is changing where discounting occurs.
This is a book that is more than it's cover. Yeah, you'll learn about some coupons, but it also gets deep man. Check it out.
Expected to read this book and learn how to save money by taking advantage of discounts and bargains and not get screwed over. While there's a little of that (apparently make sure to clear your cookies if you are "shopping around" online) this book is way more than that and you'll open the lid on a whole stealthy and secretive world you never realized existed.
Learned that coupon fraud is a major crime that makes sketchy people thousands of dollars. Learned there are plenty of sales that luxury brands think aren't good enough for me. Confirmed what I already knew about Ann Taylor Outlet mostly having products they don't sell in their actual stores, though I like those clothes the best anyway. Know who sold the first coupons ever? You will after you read this book.
Also had some deeper discussions about how ideas of social strata relate to willingness to bargain and how the changing global economy is changing where discounting occurs.
This is a book that is more than it's cover. Yeah, you'll learn about some coupons, but it also gets deep man. Check it out.
October 10, 2013
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this book offered a lot of good insight and explanation of the retail world – even touching on items such as airlines, hotels, and of course – the coupon craze that has birthed reality shows and the popularity of sites such as Groupon and Living Social. Sometimes I paged through quickly, my interest not being kept high enough to really get the background of past retail stores and the like. The sections that did interest me were the ones that pertained to me – Groupon, travel discounts when flying, even hotels. It was interesting to get a predication of the future of these coupon-like sites, and some background on them in general. While I didn’t really take away what I thought I would (firm tips on how to save while shopping) it was a unique take on the Bargain Fever our country seems to have.
I thought this book offered a lot of good insight and explanation of the retail world – even touching on items such as airlines, hotels, and of course – the coupon craze that has birthed reality shows and the popularity of sites such as Groupon and Living Social. Sometimes I paged through quickly, my interest not being kept high enough to really get the background of past retail stores and the like. The sections that did interest me were the ones that pertained to me – Groupon, travel discounts when flying, even hotels. It was interesting to get a predication of the future of these coupon-like sites, and some background on them in general. While I didn’t really take away what I thought I would (firm tips on how to save while shopping) it was a unique take on the Bargain Fever our country seems to have.
January 30, 2015
An interesting book on the history and practices of retail pricing and selling - a lot more interesting than it sounds. Ellwood has a great down to earth style that makes everything easy to understand. Did you know Coca Cola was the first company to offer a discount coupon? Or that Louis Vuitton never, absolutely never, discounts its products, anywhere? Every wonder what drove the Outlet Mall craze, the allure of Groupon, how 100-year leaders Sears and Penneys slit their own throats? Or why your smartphone has put you in control of pricing? If you think your frequent-use discount card may actually be using you instead, this book will show you how you may be right. I still remain retail's worst consumer, but this book will show you some of the tricks to getting better pricing no matter where you go, and the pitfalls to watch out for.
July 1, 2016
I received this book through a First Reads giveaway.
Mine is an Uncorrected Proof with the name Bargain Fever: How to Shop in a Discounted World. It started off well, and I really liked the section about couponing, but it slowed down a lot in the middle of the book and never really picked back up. I feel like the author spent too much time discussing the amount of Louis Vuitton rip offs you can find on the street and how certain managers and creative directors of companies got fired after the companies lost money due to limiting or not offering discounts.
It does give a lot of good information about how sales work and how sales and discounts have changed with the times. If you're interested in sales and marketing, this would be a great read for you. It just wasn't what I expected.
Mine is an Uncorrected Proof with the name Bargain Fever: How to Shop in a Discounted World. It started off well, and I really liked the section about couponing, but it slowed down a lot in the middle of the book and never really picked back up. I feel like the author spent too much time discussing the amount of Louis Vuitton rip offs you can find on the street and how certain managers and creative directors of companies got fired after the companies lost money due to limiting or not offering discounts.
It does give a lot of good information about how sales work and how sales and discounts have changed with the times. If you're interested in sales and marketing, this would be a great read for you. It just wasn't what I expected.
August 14, 2016
I recieved this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway.
I was very excited to read this book as I consider myself to be an avid bargain hunter and looking for more tips. The book was well researched with lots of information however it seemed geared more towards what a business can do to get customers by offering bargains rather than how a consumer can take advantage of such deals. I found the beginning of the book caught my attention far better than the middle and the end. This book may be helpful to a newcomer to the world of deal seeking or to a company looking to attract new buyers; I would not necessarily recommend it however to an experienced bargain hunter looking for new ways to save.
I was very excited to read this book as I consider myself to be an avid bargain hunter and looking for more tips. The book was well researched with lots of information however it seemed geared more towards what a business can do to get customers by offering bargains rather than how a consumer can take advantage of such deals. I found the beginning of the book caught my attention far better than the middle and the end. This book may be helpful to a newcomer to the world of deal seeking or to a company looking to attract new buyers; I would not necessarily recommend it however to an experienced bargain hunter looking for new ways to save.
December 23, 2013
Here's an idea for a drinking game: take a shot each time this author uses the words "tellingly" or "staggering." You'd be drunk by the end of the first page and dead by the end of the first chapter. but overuse of certain words aside, this is a really interesting book. Informative and witty, I learned things I'd never heard of before. Even though the subtitle is misleading (there's not much explanation for how to shop), I would recommend this book to anyone interesting in bargains, couponing, or learning about the seedy underbelly of retail.
Update: Goodreads lists the subtitle as "Our obsession with getting more for less," which is more fitting than the subtitle that is actually on the book: "How to shop in a discounted world."
Update: Goodreads lists the subtitle as "Our obsession with getting more for less," which is more fitting than the subtitle that is actually on the book: "How to shop in a discounted world."
June 27, 2015
The title and cover of this book are misleading: it is not so much a guide to discount shopping as a book about sales, shopping, coupons, and the psychology and history of them. Very interesting read for those who like such books as Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely, Richard Thaler, Freakonomics, Sway, or any number of studies of behavioral economics, pop psychology, sociology of marketing, or rise of consumerism.
It is additionally very well researched and cited, with footnotes, a selected bibliography, index, appendix of resources at the end, and even more notes on sources, quotes, and news at the back of the book--for which the latter few of these I am keeping a copy to reference for further reading.
It is additionally very well researched and cited, with footnotes, a selected bibliography, index, appendix of resources at the end, and even more notes on sources, quotes, and news at the back of the book--for which the latter few of these I am keeping a copy to reference for further reading.
December 26, 2013
I really like this type of book, an exploration of an idea that the average person is familiar with to some extent and in several aspects, focusing on various aspects chapter by chapter, never going too deep into a particular idea, but grazing the surface of a lot of interesting themes.
I most enjoyed the chapters about coupons, since it's something that I participate in to some extent. I never thought about the process of redemption that a store goes through or that manufacturer goes through to get paid.
I also liked reading it so soon after its release. Some of the anecdotes and references were really recent!
I most enjoyed the chapters about coupons, since it's something that I participate in to some extent. I never thought about the process of redemption that a store goes through or that manufacturer goes through to get paid.
I also liked reading it so soon after its release. Some of the anecdotes and references were really recent!
December 16, 2013
I love a book about how companies use our brains against us to subconsciously manipulate us into buying. The color red screams "Sale!" (good job, Target) And prices ending in .00 tells us it's highter quality items, while $.99 tells us it's cheaper and a throwaway item (sunglasses) while $.98 or $.98 tells us that is rock-bottom pricing and to buy it now if we want it. Interesting book, with lots of tricks.
December 31, 2013
Get the same Marketing education for 100x less than an MBA marketing course!
This is a great book to get to know where discounts come from, how people perceive discounts in the world, how coupons are used, and how you might be able to save.
Your perception of pricing may change, or the book might echo how numbers already affect you psychologically. You will be able to look at the world with a more analytical eye, and get a good laugh at the same time!
This is a great book to get to know where discounts come from, how people perceive discounts in the world, how coupons are used, and how you might be able to save.
Your perception of pricing may change, or the book might echo how numbers already affect you psychologically. You will be able to look at the world with a more analytical eye, and get a good laugh at the same time!
February 1, 2014
Don't be misled by this book's title. It's not a how to book at all. But it is an interesting history of discounting and markups. While little specific advice is given regarding tricks for getting the best price, it does make the reader aware of the techniques retailers use to get you to spend money. Keeping these various techniques in mind when shopping will make you think twice when you see a sale, or decide a product is worth full price.
May 3, 2016
If you are a shopper who is enamored with Groupon, enjoys outlet malls, and sits outside a store on Thanksgiving---this book will tell you what in your body to blame! It was also fascinating to learn the history behind discounts and how companies in the U.S. and in other countries constantly play a tricky game with making enough profit while also making sure the customers keep coming in. I learned quite a bit!
December 9, 2015
Mark Ellwood - Bargain Fever 3/5
interesting but not very unusual
The discount was born in the late nineteenth century when one department store began fixing its prices and there was an imbalance of supply and demand. Today, we live in an all-discount world, which means that stores and retailers must find ways to survive. Consumers, too, must learn to control their hardwired impulse to buy when faced with an irresistible bargain.
interesting but not very unusual
The discount was born in the late nineteenth century when one department store began fixing its prices and there was an imbalance of supply and demand. Today, we live in an all-discount world, which means that stores and retailers must find ways to survive. Consumers, too, must learn to control their hardwired impulse to buy when faced with an irresistible bargain.
April 11, 2018
Great entertaining book, very well written. It actually feels more like very long article or a cover story more than a book. Interesting to everyone excited about trade marketing, coupons, luxury, fashion.
Just be aware that it is heavily concentrated on the USA market.
Just be aware that it is heavily concentrated on the USA market.
December 21, 2015
I found the psychology (admittedly limited in its scope) behind why we love sales intriguing. Ellwood dissects our feverish search for bargains and gives countless examples. I particularly liked the polar opposite he discusses: how four companies (Apple, Louis Vuitton for example) never have sales and how that produces a cultish elitism.
January 23, 2014
A comprehensive however overwhelming look at why we pay ( or shouldn't pay) for anything & everything. Fascinating look into giants like Apple , American Girl & Louis Vuitton. What works & doesn't work from Target & jcp to hotels, airlines & Groupon.
December 22, 2016
This was an easy read, but I felt like the material was second-hand material that I had read before. The writer has an annoying, jokey-style way of writing that grates. Not worth a recommendation to read.
April 3, 2014
I skimmed the last third. I think the book was just different than I expected.
December 29, 2013
3.5 stars, and more interesting (and funny!) than I would have expected.
January 17, 2014
The title of this one is misleading. It is more a history and look into the psychology of selling, buying and bargains. Still a good read, that I enjoyed.
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