LilyKat
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2009
- Messages
- 835
We went to see our venue's recommended florist last week. He was really nice and spent over an hour with us discussing possible options. I made the fundamental mistake of not telling him my budget (which was £1000 - about $1600) from the outset, and he didn't ask. The first inkling I got of the price was when he wrote everything down formally on headed paper - and it was £1900 (about $3000 - ie almost double our budget). We said it was fine (I don't know why - put on the spot, and he'd spent so much time and effort on us?), and paid a £1000 deposit, the remainder to be paid a month before. No contracts.
We got home and I then slightly freaked out about going so much over budget (even though we can technically afford it - I just don't feel comfortable with the cost). I called him up the next day and asked if we could leave out a few things, to bring the cost down to £1500. He didn't sound thrilled, but said it was ok.
Well, on further reflection, £1500 is still a lot more than we wanted to spend. We've now decided we would like to keep to our original £1000 budget, and can leave off certain things (such as the £200-apiece pedestals) to get there. We're not asking him to go down on his price for anything - we're just leaving certain things out. I'm not asking for any money back, as the deposit will cover the full cost. My wedding date is off-season (so it's not like we're stopping him from getting a bigger order).
My question is - is it wrong to do this? Are vendors used to this or is it considered bad form to change a (tentative) verbal agreement? I just feel bad that we're messing him around - although it's all been within a week, and we're still giving him £1000 worth of business...
(Oh, and public service announcement for any brides meeting with vendors - TALK MONEY FROM THE START!!!)
We got home and I then slightly freaked out about going so much over budget (even though we can technically afford it - I just don't feel comfortable with the cost). I called him up the next day and asked if we could leave out a few things, to bring the cost down to £1500. He didn't sound thrilled, but said it was ok.
Well, on further reflection, £1500 is still a lot more than we wanted to spend. We've now decided we would like to keep to our original £1000 budget, and can leave off certain things (such as the £200-apiece pedestals) to get there. We're not asking him to go down on his price for anything - we're just leaving certain things out. I'm not asking for any money back, as the deposit will cover the full cost. My wedding date is off-season (so it's not like we're stopping him from getting a bigger order).
My question is - is it wrong to do this? Are vendors used to this or is it considered bad form to change a (tentative) verbal agreement? I just feel bad that we're messing him around - although it's all been within a week, and we're still giving him £1000 worth of business...
(Oh, and public service announcement for any brides meeting with vendors - TALK MONEY FROM THE START!!!)