Hey everyone,
This is not just about me or my experiences, but if you're an asshole that thinks I should never complain about anything, you will want to sit this one out. *Puts on "I support small businesses" sticker, and gets on soap box*
Everyone else, look at the people in your life, and realize that many, many, many of them are hugely financially struggling right now. In a few months there will be so many homeless people (because they can't pay rent or bills and can't land a job and got fired because coronavirus,) that it will be frightening. I want you to think about this because SO MANY of my friends are small business owners, and they are getting fucked left and right by people who confuse the fact that a small business owner is more understanding than a large company, that you can also wait to pay them, not pay them, get free shit from them all of the time, or heckle their price down, and that's just totally OK. It isn't OK. You do realize that the electric company will not be shuttered if it doesn't get three large payments by Friday, but the girl who does those eyelash extensions down the street is facing months of not being able to open her business, financial aid that doesn't cover a tenth of her costs, and then clients who do this:
"OK, Maureen, if you take like 20% off, and like I can pay in 2 weeks, I will come in on Friday."
Please note, the person above will often ghost you and then show up 2 weeks later and ask for the same thing with a 2 week pay window.
People, small businesses literally depend on their sales so, so, so much, that if they have 2 bad months, that might just be the end. At least in the USA, it's also nearly impossible to get financial help for much of much when you are self employed. And if you own the business? Everything and everyone who's working for you gets paid before you do. That hurts when sales are slow and spare and when people think it's OK to start haggling the price down.
So, if you're the struggling owner of a small business, someone offering to pay you next week is tiresome in a good economy, but you can probably handle it. Yeah, you learn quickly to make sure you don't give them something before they pay if there is a probability they will never pay, but they rarely if ever heckle you for a lower price, and you can handle their scheduling BS. If you lose a few payments, it's just an average year. Right now? It's the difference between if you have it you're still struggling, and if you get screwed you're homeless and that's it, your business is dead. It's really getting to that point.
And I keep seeing this price gouging. Like why are you asking Al's Fine Furniture for half off? Do you really think he's doing 500x the business he was before the pandemic? Did you really try to negotiate buy one get one free at your dentist in regard to fillings? I mean, if that's normal in your culture, it isn't in mine, and it's rude. It's also costing people their jobs.
Keep in mind, when I have a good year, I buy a lot more nice things, and generally unique things from smaller sellers (I support small businesses!), but I also support bigger chains as well (supermarkets and utilities, etc.) because I need basic widespread goods and services, like you. When I become poor, I can't afford many smaller businesses, and I need to economize, but I miss the little things. I want a new tattoo right now, for example, and three guys run my favorite tattoo parlor. I don't have a few spare Benjamins ($100 bills) to make an appointment. When I get my hair colored, I need to pinch pennies to afford it, but I love my salon, and it's a small business so I gladly keep my appointments and pay them for their expertise. But what I do not do is this "HEY, I know it's a pandemic, and like can't you just cut me a break and like just accept $75 for this $120 tattoo - I mean it's small, right?" That's shitty. Shitty. I would never do that. I own a small business and I can't afford a good tip, but I'm giving one anyway so that person's lights stay on and kids get fed. That's what good people do. They do not price gouge a struggling business owner, or demand free goods and services from them.
So why is it that so many of my friends who sell readings, sell spells, and also my therapist/psychiatrist/psychologist friends (weirdly enough) find themselves getting this "Hey, can I have this at half off? The pandemic made me poor." Well, us too, and we are paying to keep businesses open. Like this one I'll get "Why is this $325!?" Because it's seven days of work and 5 spells in a package deal that individually would cost you around $400 at the low end, or more anywhere else when combined? How's that?" A therapist friend of mine was told that she was living like a king off of a $50 payment for an hour. She can't afford bread right now. She's super broke. And the client paid her ONE QUARTER of her usual rate (because the client has no insurance) and then told her she's a piece of shit. Another peer of mine? He's a well known psychic and usually gets $150/hr. Right now he only gets the same rate of business when charging SIXTY AN HOUR. This dude works for a few celebrities (who still pay old rates,) so he's known, but anyone who does readings will tell you that your well off clients are only a small percentage of your whole clientele. He was couch surfing a few months ago. He had to move because he broke up with his girlfriend (she kept the apartment,) and getting into a new place is too expensive on like $400 a week or so. (Newsflash - psychics and therapists often do not do paying work for every hour we work.)
Stop gouging people in small business for free and lesser costing services. We are struggling to make ends meet, too. I know you feel like you don't have enough (many of you,) but if you want good work/service, pay the listed price. Stop being shitty. Imagine you go into work tomorrow and your boss tells you that you now make a third of your usual paycheck but still need to work as much, and if you dare complain, then you're fired because some desperate person will do your job. That's the equivalent of you gouging people for cheaper services. The new person would do a far inferior job than you would, but who cares, they will work for like $3 an hour, so you're fucked unless you take it. Well, you know what, no. We need to push back at people who think we are worth less than our value.
And while I can't say other businesses do this, I legitimately have helped many clients in bad financial situations who really want something, people I know who are the BEST FUCKING PEOPLE EVER, who have been horribly affected by this pandemic in financial (and sometimes in physical health or through loss of friends and family,) ways get something affordable for their need. These are people I've worked with for years, and they are good people. Loyal customers who patronize your business and generally pay without any problem are the cornerstone of a small business, and you do show them you value them by giving them something free or lesser cost from time to time...and unsurprisingly, they never ask it of you. Ever. Because they realize you need to get paid, too.
Then there are people with steady work at the same (or a higher rate) of hours at their job and same wages for it, and they are more often the ones thinking they can price gouge. Or I wouldn't know them and never worked with them, and they think why not ask for freebies or a lesser cost. What? Who raised you people? What in the actual fuck.
In most cases if you want to try to squeeze as much free stuff out of me as possible, you want to undercut my prices, or etc.... Just don't take up my time. I'm working 16 hours a day for 1/4th or so of what my average weekly net pay was. My husband cannot work and earn a check. I have to pay his expensive bills also. The difference between you paying next week or this week might mean I get to live off Ramens this week and the wifi gets shut off. If my husband could work (and stopped incurring large bills) that would be a blessing, but I supported him when he didn't work with no problem at a few different points in the past (but not 2020 - this is just way, way, way too badly paying to not struggle). SO...NO, you can't have $325 of work for $200. No I will not sell you a reading for $35. No. No. No.
I think people forget how delicate of a position small business owners are in even in the best of times. So this is my reminder.
I hope it sinks in. If it doesn't, soon everything - and I mean everything - is going to be a poorly made, mass produced walmart piece of shit and you won't be able to find anything else, because you were not willing to pay for anything of a finer quality.
I understand we all want a deal. I try to run a few sales with that in mind when I can. It's good for people who do need that price cut, who I don't know and wouldn't give it to (outside of a sale) but again...those people don't price gouge. They wait. They are respectful. If you are financially struggling, keep in mind, so are those small businesses. Of every dollar I earn, 80% is basically going back into the business to keep it running. I enjoy the wifi outside of my job, but my job needs it to run, for example. Rent means I have a place to do spells, but also to sleep.
Don't haggle small business owners for freebies and cheap stuff. If you haggle me for it from here on out, I will fire you. :P Wait for a sale. :P Thank you for understanding.
Your cranky-ass rootworkin' friend,
~Cat
PS- If you get mad and think this is about you, it actually came from 2 friends calling today and complaining how people keep price gouging and abusing them, and me sympathizing, and not about any of my clients in particular...but if you did think it was about you, you probably need to take a hard look at your own behavior, to be fair.