UFO, spot on bud.
I think the point some seem to be missing here is that said product isn't going to just sit there. Someone else will likely buy it at the marked price. Don't act like you're doing the shop a favour by "letting" them sell it to you at a discount.
Well, that is a call that only the owner can make, but generally speaking, stale and slow moving inventory should be cleared out asap to make space for new and better moving inventory. To do well, the owner has to balance everything and this includes purchasing (or hiring a good purchasing manager) and predicting which products will sell with the highest margins.
That said I do feel like it is a give and take relationship, the shop is doing me a favor for considering to give me a discount and I am doing them a favor for considering to buy their product. All sticker prices are simply invitation to buy the product. Bottom line, this is a competitive business with shops like Starbucks locations in Vancouver. And contrary to what the so called "experts" on here may think or claim, if my business was so darn bad for the shop, the owner would not treat me as a VIP, so I am guessing that those $2k (estimate) a year really does a lot of good for his bottom line (whatever the margins etc). Like I said before, this thread really made me appreciate my LBS that much more, I can only imagine the body-language message that someone like L. Ron Hubbard would have sent to that aforementioned "dentist" while trying to remain polite wow.