Leaving Amazon

LifeModel my life doesn't revolve around buying products, which is why Amazon & Prime in particular works for me.

A good case in point from today - I shall be on holiday for two weeks from Monday & so will prepare some home cooked meals for my parents to reheat & thus need some foil trays. I happened to be passing through Cambridge today and spent probably half an hour traipsing around three different shops that hadn't got any. Less than a minute online and I have some arriving tomorrow...

sepiashots said

I use Amazon, but I preference other shops where I can e.g. Books from Waterstones, etc. 

It always makes me chuckle when people prefer to shop at Waterstones than Amazon for books, as though Waterstones is not responsible for putting hundreds of independent bookstores out of business over the years. 

Theperfectcapture said

Been a member for years, watch prime TV all the time. My account is shared with others within the household so we all get free delivery

For me it's a no brainer

Me too.  My beloved is an avid eBayer so we can check each others prices to avoid any excesses on either side.  I was always a Prime member so Prime Video was a ‘freebie’ for me…..and I watch all the time.

I never have any problems with Amazon deliveries (or my wife with Evri for eBay) unlike Feel The Passion and others seem to have.

A few years ago I discovered Amazon Essentials.  GAP used to be my go to clothing store and when it closed I was a bit lost.  I tried their online store but didn’t find it to my liking.  Browsing Amazon one day I came across Essentials chinos that reviewers compared favourably to GAP but at a ridiculously low price…..I really mean ridiculously.   They also had my (weird 33in) waist size.  They were great.  So I continue to buy them….then button-down Oxford shirts….and more…..the whole GAP thing.  The try before you buy scheme is a welcome addition…..though returns were never a problem*

Recently I discovered Amazon sold a Spanish brand I used to think was only available in Spain.  I was amazed to find that the prices they charged were never higher than in Spain and mostly were at a discount to those prices I was used to.

Finally, I do check out German Amazon and Spanish Amazon for items that are uncompetitive here.  For example a particular fitted NFL cap I wanted was £60 here but £30 from Germany.

So I’m a big fan…..but I would like to see Starmer introduce a Sales Tax on UK Revenue to hammer them for the scam they use to evade our Corporation Tax by kidding on they operate only out of The Republic.  It’s BS of course and they should be made to pay.

* This is not equivalent to ‘old school’ ‘browsing’ as some poster said.  Browsing is/was done in-store…..before the word was Co-opted by t’internet.  TBYB  is instead equivalent to ‘home approval’ - take the item home and see if you like it.  Home Approval was - at least in Scotland where I was brought up - a common perk of being a member of the Co-op….so ubiquitous as a retailer there, then, that it was known to everyone as ‘The Store’.

As we live in the arse end of nowhere Amazon has been very convenient for us. Our nearest shopping centre is Cork city and chances are whatever you want can’t be found for love nor money anywhere in the city. So Amazon, Etsy or most online service to the rescue.

I use Amazon a lot, been a Prime member for a few years. I’ve had few if any issues with them, and their returns process is excellent.

My one gripe is with their search facility which ‘sort of maybe’ takes note of what you ask, then tries to sell you what they want to sell anyway. Had several conversations about more explicit search capabilities woth varying levels of support people, none of whom could offer any assistance

Find Amazon really good value for money for what I use it for. I order alot of stuff from Amazon and it arrives either same day or next day.

For me I don't see it as any more complicated to use than any other online retailer, actually find it much simpler.

Within the cost there is Prime Video which is ok and Prime Music.

Overall it's a no brainer for me.

Just sign up for Prime.  Included is Prime Photos, which give unlimited storage of photos, including RAWs, in their cloud.  That alone is worth the cost to me as I was paying about £100 a year for 2TB previously, now I have about 20TB in it at no extra cost.  

As for cheap crap online that could be dangerous, like chargers etc, you can get those in the high street stores too.  Pound shop style places and pop-up shops sell cheap non-certified electronics the same as you get online, but probably charge more.  

Unfortunately whenever I don’t buy from Amazon to give other companies a chance I end up with issues, for example WEX calling me a lier as an item had fallen out of the box they didn’t tape up properly . Amazon , I order things almost weekly , issues 0

Edited by Perception

Malbon said

After using Amazon for years I find I am reluctant to continue.

It's just that when you try to buy something you face this elaborate game where they try to trick you into paying for something you do not want - ie Prime membership.

I was about to buy a couple of books the other day and didn't go through with it, purely because I didn't feel confident I had ticked the right boxes.

Anyone else have a problem with this and looking for an alternative?

JMPIX said

I disagree with OP but recently I did sign up for Prime thinking it was a free trial(I get them often) when it wasn't! A lesson learned.

Today they are offering me Prime for a week for 99p lol I dont use it that often to benefit Prime anyway. Although I did get 6 month free Amazon Music voucher recently so thats was nice.

LifeModel said

Amazon basically lost my business when they slapped on the minimum postage charge, though I do still consult when I'm struggling to find something.

You then face an intensely annoying search tool which insists on showing you just about everything except the specific product you are looking for.

And then, yes, they try to dupe you into signing up for Prime. I have accidentally done it before and now know to look out for it.

The only way we stop getting more of this is to let the businesses which try it wither. Sadly there seems to be no end of people happy to go along with this sort of practice.

I'm a member now (and save enough on postage to justify it) but I first signed up by accident (I got a refund). We aren't alone:

"About 4.5 million people in the UK have, at some point, signed up to Amazon Prime by mistake, according to research last year by campaign group Which?. "

https://www.theguardian.com/money/article/2024/sep/02/amazon-is-trying-to-trick-me-into-signing-up-for-prime-services

MAndrew said

Malbon said

After using Amazon for years I find I am reluctant to continue.

It's just that when you try to buy something you face this elaborate game where they try to trick you into paying for something you do not want - ie Prime membership.

I was about to buy a couple of books the other day and didn't go through with it, purely because I didn't feel confident I had ticked the right boxes.

Anyone else have a problem with this and looking for an alternative?

JMPIX said

I disagree with OP but recently I did sign up for Prime thinking it was a free trial(I get them often) when it wasn't! A lesson learned.

Today they are offering me Prime for a week for 99p lol I dont use it that often to benefit Prime anyway. Although I did get 6 month free Amazon Music voucher recently so thats was nice.

LifeModel said

Amazon basically lost my business when they slapped on the minimum postage charge, though I do still consult when I'm struggling to find something.

You then face an intensely annoying search tool which insists on showing you just about everything except the specific product you are looking for.

And then, yes, they try to dupe you into signing up for Prime. I have accidentally done it before and now know to look out for it.

The only way we stop getting more of this is to let the businesses which try it wither. Sadly there seems to be no end of people happy to go along with this sort of practice.

I'm a member now (and save enough on postage to justify it) but I first signed up by accident (I got a refund). We aren't alone:

"About 4.5 million people in the UK have, at some point, signed up to Amazon Prime by mistake, according to research last year by campaign group Which?. "

https://www.theguardian.com/money/article/2024/sep/02/amazon-is-trying-to-trick-me-into-signing-up-for-prime-services

Talk about abuse of a dominant market position!

I pretty much always online shop. I hate shopping in person, too busy, too chaotic, and I don't have time haha. The convenience of online shopping and delivery for me outweighs the 2 seconds it takes to click a few times.

Vinted is a bit of an obsession of mine - people re-selling stuff and they have books (just depends what books people are selling at the time)

It's also where I sell most of my model wardrobe (and buy more)

My first port of call is usually eBay unless I want something quickly. At least their search engine actually returns the answer I was looking for rather than anything else besides! 

It works for me, I use Prime, so there is no risk of buying it by mistake, I have heard of people buying Prime by mistake, I suppose it is a bit of a pain, but you can cancel before you are billed anyway.

Gothic Image said

My first port of call is usually eBay unless I want something quickly. At least their search engine actually returns the answer I was looking for rather than anything else besides! 

My big bug bear too. Didn't used to be like that many moons ago.