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Top 5 Tips For Shopping In Mongolia
Shopping in Mongolia is just like anywhere else. There are things that you will like about shopping and things you don’t like about shopping and make you want to throw your basket on the ground in a fit of rage. If you are shopping for the first time in Mongolia there are several tips that can help make your life easier when shopping. If you want to know what to expect and make your life easier then continue reading!
There is nothing worse than that feeling of being in a supermarket or a food market and feeling overwhelmed. In Mongolia, your stress levels will be more elevated by the fact that you have to remember your shopping list and everything is in Mongolian. If you want to have a carefree experience getting in and out with your shopping continue reading. Here are 5 tips to help you when shopping in Mongolia.
Look At Product Bar Code Numbers
Mongolia when you shop at any size store you will find one thing in common. The labels will never match the products. This can be incredibly frustrating when you think you have a good deal but suddenly when you get to the checkout the price is way different. Often you will be left wondering what the price of an item is. This will be an issue regardless of the store that you go to as it takes time to restock and arrange items on shelves. You can waste countless minutes trying to figure out in a busy store what items belong to each label which is enough to rip your hair out.
“To avoid nasty surprises at the checkout, always check the barcode”
To avoid this problem and save yourself time, when you are unsure check the barcode of the product with the barcode of the label. Often what you will find is that the product has been shelved near the label but far enough a way that it can be confusing. Try looking at the first several and numbers on the barcode. At first this might feel like it takes longer but once you get the hang of it you will be glad you don’t have to put anything back at the checkout as you are 100% sure of what you are getting.
Fruits And Vegetables
You want to buy some fruit. You find some juicy looking apples so you put them in a plastic bag and then do the rest of your shopping. Once at the checkout, the cashier puts your apples to the side. Whats the problem? You didn’t get them weighed and labelled! In Mongolian stores, especially the larger stores, you will need to get any fruits or vegetables weighed and a price label. Normally there will be a employee who is weighing products for customers. If not, then head to the electronic scales and an employee who is near by should be able to weigh them for you.
You may also have to wait in line if there is a lot of people trying to get food weighed. If that is the case, you will need to be pro-active to get your items weighed and other customers will push in line. If there is also a lot of people in the store, perhaps choose to get fruits and vegetables that you don’t need to get weighed. Often stores will offer both options which are very similar in price.
Shopping Queues
I hinted at this one just before but be prepared for others to push in line while you are at a store. Mongolia isn’t Canada where people will politely wait there turn and say ‘excuse me’ every time they touch you in a queue. Mongolians are very direct and have no problem trying to get their shopping done first. It has been so bad in the past that Mongolians in some areas of businuess, like banks, have a numbering queue system so people can’t jump the queue. Now this isn’t as much of a problem in the larger stores like Emart or Sansar, but in small supermarkets or stores it will frequently occur. Be prepare to be a little more forceful. At first, this may feel a little awkard but if you aren’t ready to you may be waiting a lot longer for your groceries.
Price Bartering
Something is a little different in Mongolia compared to shopping in the west. Depending on where you do your shopping you will be able to barter for the price of products or ask for a lower price. Now, this might sound good but it can also backfire on you as prices can be increased by shop owners or stall owners where they see youare a foreigner. At larger stores you wont be able to do this as prices are standard, but smaller stores or markets you will have the opportunity to do it. A good example is Narantuul market where you can find everything from clothes, stationary, to electrical appliances. If you want to know how to get there, check out our other post
A good tip if you are planning on doing some bartering, take a Mongolian friend with you. They can arrange prices or talk to stall owners and get a price that Mongolians would rather than being overcharged as a foreigner.
Ebarmits Reciepts
Ebarmits are something which may be fimilar to you but others not. Ebarmits are receipts that you will recieve every time you purchase something from a store. These reciepts are a 10% tax on purchases but they also allow you to get 2% back on purchases. In order to do this you will need to offically register your own Ebarmit account online so that you can then scan the QR codes on the receipts. If you don’t have an account you can sign up
Now 2% doesn’t seem like much, but when it adds up you can get a lot back. Each year you will be able to claim back everything you accumulate over a year. Most larger stores will offer Ebarmit receipts as they are obligated by law. However, smaller stores and owners won’t necessarily do Ebarmits which means their prices of products can be 10% cheaper, which is a good discount. If you are at these smaller stores you can ask not to have an Ebarmit and have the 10% discount instead.
To add to this topic I would mention one more thing. If you do plan on shopping at a store often, make sure to get signed up to their rewards scheme. The larger chains will offer this and its a great way to get something a little extra that otherwise you would be missing out on. Typically they offer a reward of 0.1-2% for purchases, which again doesn’t sound like much but if you continuely shop at a store because of convenience it will add up.
So what do you think? Is there anything that you would add that surprised you about shopping in Mongolia? Perhaps something really different compared to your own country. Let me know in the comments if I missed something.
