Stage Buzz: K.B. Khushalani: Honesty:Dishonest Tricks Practised by Seller

4. Dishonest tricks practised by the Seller and their detrimental effects.

The kind of honesty expected from the trader is :—

1.Honesty in talk

(a) While recommending his articles to his customer he should neither exaggerate their qualities, nor assign to them anymore qualities than they possess, and

(b) He should not at the same time, speak low of others' articles, but should restrict himself only to praising Ins own.

2. Honesty in rate

He should keep his rates fixed once and for all. The tendency to snatch as much from the other party as possible is counterproductive and creates suspicion in the mind of the customer

A prudent businessman should avoid flexible rates, he should see that the rates are in fair level with the market price. Of course no two traders can keep the rates of all articles the same; it is just like saying, that no two watches tally exactly, and if they do at all, they cannot continue to do so for long; yet as much of standardization as can possibly be attained should be aimed at.

3. Honesty in samples.

Dishonesty- in this can be of two kinds. Some dealers show samples from the best lot, they want to sell but quote prices for the inferior articles; others choose as their sample the best of the lot they want to sell,

but the sample does not represent the average of the stock. Both practices are decidedly not good and should be discouraged; it is only a question of degree as between them, the former being worse, and the latter bad.

4. Honesty in Supply

(a) It is a practice with many dealers to show one article as a sample and supply another an inferior one. Some of them maintain great differences in the qualities and some keep less. The former are ruled out at the first stroke by the purchaser in his choice and they seldom continue as traders for long, whereas the latter carry on, but cut no good figure. Thus, the latter class of people exist for exigencies only.

{ b ) Some of the dealers again put in a few bad things in the lot; they either take undue advantage of the purchaser's weakness, or think that he would not take the trouble of returning the articles. If at all he does try to return, they reserve to themselves the choice of accepting them, and, in almost all cases, refuse to take back. This audacious abuse of confidence is very bad and detrimental to the interests of the dealer.

TO BE CONTINUED....