Bolivia situation guide
Reading a real Bolivian cotización
Álvaro's referral ('mi papá siempre imprime ahí') is how doors open in Bolivian business, and naming him is part of your first message, not a footnote. What Imprenta Moreno sends back packs four abbreviations into two lines: c/u, IVA incluido, validez, and días hábiles. Decode them once and every printer, market stall, and hardware store you deal with in Bolivia starts making sense. Your job in this chapter is to ask complete questions, the specs, the deadline, whether design is included, whether quantity earns a discount, and then close warmly without promising anything on the spot. Every price you see here is a placeholder, Bs [X]: you never judge whether a number is fair, and you never advise on a discount, you only ask.
Essential vocabulary
- quisiera pedir una cotización: I'd like to ask for a quote The polite opener for any Bolivian supplier who doesn't know you yet, the phrase that starts almost every first business message.
- c/u: per unit (cada uno) The abbreviation on almost every Bolivian price list, decode it once and menus, fichas, and hardware-store signs open up.
- IVA incluido: VAT included Tells you the quoted price is the price, recognition only, never a tax claim you need to verify yourself.
- validez: 15 días: the price is guaranteed for 15 days Prices move, a quote's validez tells you how long you can still say yes at that number.
- días hábiles: business days The phrase that quietly moves any Bolivian deadline, weekends and feriados don't count, so 7 días hábiles is more than a calendar week.
- ¿el precio incluye...?: does the price include...? The question that closes the gap between a number and what it actually covers, ask it before you commit to anything.
- ¿hay descuento por cantidad?: is there a quantity discount? A normal, polite question with a hard ceiling: you ask it, you never advise on it, and you never let the app answer it for you.
- lo consulto y le confirmo: I'll check and get back to you The standard pressure-free close, nobody serious expects a commitment on the spot, and this line is how you buy the time to decide.
- tamaño carta, a todo color: letter size, full color The two specs a printer needs before they can even start pricing your job.
Bolivian Spanish terms
- c/u: each / per unit Every Bolivian price list runs on this abbreviation, from a print shop's cotización to a market stall's cardboard sign.
- validez: how long the quoted price holds A validez line exists because Bolivian prices move; past the date, everything renegotiates and nobody finds that awkward.
- días hábiles: business days Seven días hábiles can land on the following Wednesday, not the following Monday, weekends and feriados stretch it further.
Useful phrases
- Buenas tardes. Me pasó su contacto [X]. Quisiera pedir una cotización.: Good afternoon. [X] passed me your contact. I'd like to ask for a quote. The referred, usted-register opener for any supplier who doesn't know you yet.
- Necesito [cantidad] [producto], [especificaciones].: I need [quantity] [product], [specs]. The specs line that lets a supplier actually price your job, quantity plus concrete details, one message.
- ¿Para cuándo los tendría?: When would you have them ready? The deadline question, ask it before the quote comes back, not after.
- Perfecto, lo consulto y le confirmo.: Perfect, I'll check and get back to you. The pressure-free close: warm, polite, and zero commitment on the spot.
Learn this in the app
Clients, Suppliers and Partners in Bolivia, Spanish