How to negotiate?

March 5, 2026, 9:02 PM · Charles Alfred Bazin bows can go from much more than 3k EUR; there is one of his bows currently listed for 7,500 EUR with a Raffin certificate. If you are basing your price on Tarisio history, you should add 30-40% to it to reflect what a violin shop would charge. Clearly the bow you're talking about would never fetch 7500 EUR due to the damage, but 3K might me a bit low so offering ~15% off might be a fair place to start. Ultimately though, you should feel that you paid a fair price for the bow, whatever number you end up at.

March 5, 2026, 9:06 PM · Well, no one ever wants to pay the asking price.

There are just too many variables to answer this. In the US, it depends on the individual shop (some will bargain more than others), what that shop has invested in the bow (I.e., did the shop buy it at auction? Get it in trade? Is it on consignment? If on consignment, how flexible is the owner?)

Also, what’s the current market for this maker? What’s his reputation for viola bows? Are they common.. rare? Who else is advertising a similar bow in similar condition? How long has this bow been for sale? 5 years? One week?

Here’s the bottom line: Pick a number you won’t go past. If you must have THIS bow, be prepared to pay their price, OR be prepared to walk. No different than negotiating for a car or house.

Here’s another view, though: In the big picture, €5K seems pretty low for a vintage French bow, at least in the US. If you really like it, don’t worry about trying to save a little. €1500, when you’re talking fine French bows, is a rounding error.
You may have it for a lifetime, and in a few years you won’t care what you paid for it.

March 6, 2026, 12:36 AM · I would not recommend trying to fight the shop on pricing without really having done some careful research. Are you using auction records as your basis? If so, you should keep in mind that auction prices are typically below retail, as auctions were originally placed for dealers to trade instruments and bows at wholesale. In recent years the prices have risen as speculative buyers have looked to auctions to buy for a price below retail. If your numbers are accurate auction numbers, then the retail price you mention may be a very good deal.

But it’s not as simple as just looking at average prices and coming to a magic number as an ideal retail price. You have to consider condition, the weight of the certificate (if one comes with it), and possibly provenance. When looking at your auction numbers, it’s also important to see how long ago those sales occurred. An auction from 20 years ago will not be up to date.

If you’re using retail prices posted online from other shops as reference or you’re looking at examples marked as sold, there’s a lot of data you’re not seeing there. An advertised price is not necessarily the final price. In that case, a violin or bow might end up selling for a price after some negotiation, but the online listing only shows that a violin offered for a certain price has sold. Unless you’ve seen receipts, you can’t be certain.

How you approach the shop will make a big difference in the way they respond. If you come across as though you’re accusing them of overcharging, it won’t make them want to negotiate. If you ask in a way that’s not confrontational, you’ll likely get a clear answer about whether there’s room to budge in price. Consignments pay the shop less than items they own, so keep in mind that they may not have much wiggle room for discounting.

If you’re polite with the shop, that might benefit you in the long run. If they know you like a bow, they might let you know later on if the pride is reduced, or they might find you a good alternative that will cost you less.

March 6, 2026, 5:34 AM · Thanks for the helpful comments so far. I will not plan on offering anything close to what I've seen online and would like to be respectful. I'm also curious about how the process actually works, like if I would make an offer because of the damages does a shop typically have a lowest accepted price given to them by the seller? Or does the seller request that any offer be communicated to them by phone call?

Edited: March 6, 2026, 6:10 AM · A database I subscribe to says that the retail range for a very good silver-mounted CA Bazin viola bow is $12,100-14,700. So north of 10k Euros.

Obviously, there are things that can change this up or down, like condition, originality of parts, quality of materials, repairs, certification. Major wear due to extended playing but no huge restoration might knock 25% off, for example.