Chez Mohamed was much more bare bones, located in what looked like an industrial building with two main rooms filled with stacks upon stacks of rugs in every color of the rainbow. While I wasn’t completely sure what I was looking for, I knew I really liked the thicker sheep wool rugs with the off-white background and brightly colored Berber patterns. There was no tea to be served, sadly. The whole exchange took less than 30 minutes.

One of the first rugs I laid eyes on was the rug I took home. But first came the dreaded price negotiations: I had read whatever the first price offered, undercut it by fifty percent, if not more. Mohamed offered a starting price of 6700 MAD (757 USD). I laughed, and offered 1500 MAD. From here typically there are back-and-forth pricing negotiations. Somehow I got really ballsy and stuck to my original offer of 1500, even packing up my things and getting back into our van at some point. This “walk away” tactic is one I had read really works, and it did!

He eventually chased after me in the car, and after much shouting “what is your final offer!” and me repeating “1500” ad nauseum, Mohamed finally conceded and sold me the rug for my offered price. After we shook on it, he told me I was shrewd like a “Berber woman.” I took that as a compliment, and walked away with a rug that I love at less than 25% of his initial asking price. I’ve always said I’m a sale shopper.

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A Travelogue – London & Berlin 12/5 - 12/11

June 2014 – February 2016

September 26-28, 2014

August 12-16, 2014

August 1-3, 2014

July 21-24, 2014

November 2012-April 2014

November 19, 2013