Does anyone buy tea during Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales around here?

[GaoShan]

I have a feeling that most of you are too cool for school when it comes to these things, particularly since many of the higher-end vendors don't participate. However, I'm curious if any of you place orders to take advantage of the sales and which companies, if any, you'd recommend.

I ordered some Taiwanese hongcha and a few curiosities from What-Cha, using the sale and some credit to save about 25% off. I also secured my winter's supply of Fujian black teas and some Dancongs from Wuyi Origin at 15% off, which ended up saving me about $25. I like these vendors and focused on teas I already know are good. Last time, I went with a new-to-me company and was disappointed, so impulse buys can definitely backfire.

My next big order will be with Daxue Jiadao, so it all balances out.

[Andrew S]

I like these vendors and focused on teas I already know are good.

That sounds like a good way to approach it. I think that the real value doesn't lie in chasing sales across the internet, but rather just checking to see if the people you'd order from anyway might be offering something.

The whole 'black Friday' thing seems like a fairly new concept (at least to me, outside America), but even so, I've just noticed that EoT and Yee On are taking part.

I've been trying all sorts of 'normal' teas recently; perhaps this is an excuse to order some more old tea to 'balance out' in my own way...

Andrew

[.m.]

I hate the whole BF thing. It's not about being cool, it just makes me feel like a fool to buy at a regular time. But since it is here one may as well 'profit' from it...

[faj]

I hate the whole BF thing. It's not about being cool, it just makes me feel like a fool to buy at a regular time. But since it is here one may as well 'profit' from it...

For better or worse, rebates are a thing. For some products, you can invest research time, patience and mental load in exchange for lower prices. People who can't wait or won't bother subsidize those who make the investment. It is a form of differential pricing. It seems frustrating but, on a certain level, fair : if you put the time into it, you can save money, and you get to chose whether you do. It rewards fidelity too (if you know your vendor better, you are likely to give them more business in return for a lower average price).

I am not branching out from my usual tea vendors due to rebates (Black Friday or otherwise), but if I know a vendor offers predictable rebates, I might plan larger purchases accordingly for products I know I want anyway, stock well, and for which the delay does not impact quality or availability. Predictability is key : if a vendor offers, say, 10% every year on everything at Black Friday, then if I purchase at full price at other times of the year I won't feel cheated.

Credit cards, now that is outright unfair : by sheer market power, credit card issuers force merchants to have the same sale price whether a credit card is used (and transaction costs are extracted) or not. People with weaker credit (no credit card, or with credit cards but forced to pay interest on unpaid balance) subsidize those who pay their credit cards on time. This is trickle-up economics and monopoly rolled up into one giant scam that has been going on undisturbed for decades.

[GaoShan]

I am not branching out from my usual tea vendors due to rebates (Black Friday or otherwise), but if I know a vendor offers predictable rebates, I might plan larger purchases accordingly for products I know I want anyway, stock well, and for which the delay does not impact quality or availability. Predictability is key : if a vendor offers, say, 10% every year on everything at Black Friday, then if I purchase at full price at other times of the year I won't feel cheated.

This is how I usually approach these sales as well. I do my research, choose vendors I like, and pick things that will store reasonably well. I'll also wait a while for these sales if it means saving enough to offset the shipping cost. Big purchases go to well-liked vendors with predictably good tea. I'll occasionally make a small purchase from a vendor I think might be good if they have a decent sale, sometimes finding a gem and sometimes not.

@Andrew S, have you tried the hongcha from EoT? Might be my small purchase this year.

[bebop8]

Made another purchase from Den's Tea yesterday. I'd been waiting for their inevitable Thanksgiving/Black Friday sale so I could save a few bucks. Happy to take advantage of 20% off.

[Andrew S]

Andrew S, have you tried the hongcha from EoT? Might be my small purchase this year.

No, unfortunately; I thought that I had some packets lying around of that WuYi hongcha that they've got, but I just opened the box and discovered a rougui yancha that I have no memory of ever ordering...

Andrew

[GaoShan]

Andrew S, have you tried the hongcha from EoT? Might be my small purchase this year.

No, unfortunately; I thought that I had some packets lying around of that WuYi hongcha that they've got, but I just opened the box and discovered a rougui yancha that I have no memory of ever ordering...

Andrew

LOL, that was the one that caught my attention! Hopefully that rou gui is a surprise because you forgot about it, not because they got your order wrong.

[.m.]

Andrew S, have you tried the hongcha from EoT? Might be my small purchase this year.

I like both the Daxueshan hongcha and the Sun Moon Lake hongcha quite a bit: easy to drink, very nice aftertaste and can handle indefinite number of steep and long infusions. The Beyond the clouds I've had a few years back and found good but unremarkable. Haven't tried the Wuyi one.

[Andrew S]

@GaoShan: ha, finally found it! So I wasn't going insane after all... (or at least, this isn't proof that I was)

I'll give it a try today and report back, though I'm not too good at 'tasting notes', and my preferences for hongcha are usually more on the fruity and elegant side than the chocolate-y and rich side which some people prefer.

Andrew

[GaoShan]

GaoShan: ha, finally found it! So I wasn't going insane after all... (or at least, this isn't proof that I was)

I'll give it a try today and report back, though I'm not too good at 'tasting notes', and my preferences for hongcha are usually more on the fruity and elegant side than the chocolate-y and rich side which some people prefer.

Andrew

Great! I look forward to your thoughts. I also like fruity, jammy, floral hongcha, which is why I'm such a lapsang fan.

[aet]

I was asked ( as a vendor ) to do some of those Fridays, Mondays...Xmas and whatever marketing sales.
As a person ( not as a vendor ) I feel it a bit not moral selling a tea / teaware for 100$ and then next day , exactly the same tea not being damaged or something what wout justyfy the sale , to sell it for 80$.
It's a spitting it to the face of the customers who have bought the same item for 100$ and they may rightfully feel being robbed 20$ , because I just said " hey , I can also sell it for 80$ ! " .
It is a different case if discount is set based on amount ( more buy , cheaper it gets ) or if old green tea for example. But tea / teaware which has no issue , in my opinion , no reason to discount.
Discount means admitting the failure.

For the vendors who start to play this game, there is now way back anymore. In fact , it goes down the spiral itnto the more ridicolous discounts like 75% off , or "shipping is even more free than before " ...yeah, you read that right I've seen that one on Reddit once.
So naturally , you ( as a buyer ) will wait for the special offers , having like X shops in your bookmarks , subscribed on Newsletters and buy the tea in right timing. That's 100% right , no argue about that. It makes you righfully feel smarter because other "idiots" buying same tea for much higher prices who justyfy it them selves " I don't spend time on research / checking up on sales , and time = money , so I don't feel being cheated ". Yes, also the attitude and can't argue about that.

I'm paying a subscription for one service every year. I'm 8y customer of that company. During all those years they were rising up the prices every year and I kept paying ( coz need that stuff for our business ) . Last year my friend ( new customer to them ) purchased from them same service for 40% less because Black Friday ...you can imagine how I felt.
On my renewal ( which was after BF ) I had to negotiate ( by threatening changing other provider ) to get at least 20% discount. Things are bit more complicated with this service , but I was at the point of actually leave and find other one.
This year I took a BF offer to pay the price I paid back 4y ago ( which is the limit I'm willing to pay ..and compare to the other companies ) .

[Andrew S]

@aet: I agree with your criticisms of this concept.

Presumably, vendors who start doing these sales will soon find their income drying up in the few months prior to the next expected sale...

Discounts based on large orders or long-term relationships seem like a more sensible option to reward customers instead of punishing people who buy at the 'wrong time'.

It also doesn't make sense for teas like puer - most retail shops in other areas say things like 'we need to make room' etc. But why would you want to 'make room' for a tea which is meant to improve with age?

Andrew

[GaoShan]

@aet, I also understand your points. I wouldn't think of discounts as an admission of failure on the vendor's part, but rather, as rewards for being patient, incentives for new customers, predictable times to save for returning buyers, or just attempts to move items that aren't selling for whatever reason. Most people, myself included, would have no idea what that $100 piece of teaware cost the vendor to buy. Cynical customers might think it cost them $25 or less and that the other $75 is profit. In that case, giving a 20% discount for a few days a year might make sense. The vendor is still making $55 from the sale, but patient customers can get a nice piece of teaware for slightly less without trying to buy it on TaoBao. And if someone needs that piece immediately, they can pay full price and the vendor makes up for the loss. Of course, one vendor might pay $25 for that piece and another might pay $65 for a similar but better example without the customer being aware, but unfortunately, having or not having periodic discounts won't necessarily make that obvious. (Vendors should absolutely be compensated for their time and expertise, but wouldn't you be upset if you paid $100 for a $25 teacup, especially if it was sold to you as something special?)

Basically, customers might feel that their inability to tell the quality of unknown vendors stacks the field against them, while vendors with better products might feel it's a race to the bottom that they'll inevitably lose.

Having said that, I'd be very suspicious of a vendor offering 50 or 75% off! Either their tea is bad or they're marking it up way too high. I'd expect more like 10 to 20%.

I'd be angry at that subscription service, too. It's annoying that they wouldn't lock in your original rate or let you take advantage of the discounts for new members.

Customers may feel manipulated by sales, but they also feel manipulated by high prices that don't always correlate with high quality. (This doesn't apply to you, as I think your prices are fair and the teas I've tried from you are good. )

[Bourder]

I like prices that are fair. When discounts appear regularly, it means that the regular prices are already above what is profitable. It doesn't make sense then to make orders outside the sales. That's why I only buy butter and bananas at third or half of the original price. The dairy industry is big here, so they do have to offer it cheaper from time to time to free up the storage space. And people don't buy overripe bananas here.
It does make you feel stupid or robbed when you buy something and the next day it is much cheaper. Once I ordered a huge amount of tea and two days later there was a discount on all the products. I was annoyed that I didn't predict the sale.
For tea things the only acceptable discounts are for old green tea, funky storage, and damaged teaware. Otherwise, the price to begin with was set much higher in order to trick customers into buying when the sale time comes.
I do feel tempted when the discounts arrive, but I don't want to buy under pressure. It's always been a disaster for me. As I said, I like fair prices. I don't need discounts when the price is good to begin with. I can get Gorgonzola for less than $12/kilo and I'm happy with that.
For vendors it might be a convenient tool. Sell a lot at once, sell what you couldn't really sell, don't bother with small orders few times a week, sell more than you would under regular prices.