Amazon vs Local Retailer

[Glocktogo]

I do a fair amount of Amazon shopping.....mainly for convenience, I hate to have to drive a few miles for an item that I can have delivered to my doorstep if I'm in no hurry for it. HOWEVER, yesterday I received a really weird item. Keep in mind, I'm a retired pharmacist so I'm somewhat familiar with medication labeling requirements. I ordered a package of Mucinex DM as we have nearly exhausted our supply and dealing with something like RSV for a bout 3 weeks. I did not want to go to the pharmacy, etc ....so Amazon. It was delayed and took F O R E V E R to arrive. To my astonishment it came USPS from New York....opened the package and there was a blister card with the medication. NOT in the original box ( correct quantity ordered) which has the directions for use as well as the expiration date. There was no expiration date on the blister card. I demanded a refund for this illegal packaging of medication and threw it in the trash.

You have to be really careful in this scenario. I ordered what I thought was Bausch + Lomb Muro 128 eye drops off Amazon. The picture showed Bausch + Lomb Muro 128 and the item I received was in a box labeled Bausch + Lomb Muro 128, with a Lot # and expiration date. BUT, the sealed plastic bag it came in had a very tiny "Made in China" label on it.

Bausch + Lomb has a counterfeit hotline. I called it and they confirmed that I was sent fake Bausch + Lomb Muro 128 eye drops. The last thing I ever want to do is put fake Chinese eye drops in my eyes. B+L had me mail the fake stuff to them along with all the Amazon info, and they mailed me a check to cover what I was out. They sent me the link to the real B+L product on Amazon and I ordered that. Now that original Amazon link says "Algasan", even though the picture still shows Bausch + Lomb Muro 128.

I don't think this has anything to do with "paying attention" to what you put in your online shopping cart. It was deceptively marketed and IMO, it still is. I like to think I'm a pretty sharp cookie and I almost got bit. So just be extra careful if it's something that could jeopardize your health or safety!

 

[enuf]

We buy local brick and mortar when possible - we don't get too caught up in Walmart or Target over Amazon but will pay more from a local vendor.

 

[kingfish]

I discovered a dirty little secret by accident one day about Amazon. I was shopping for some item which I don't recall at the moment. I went on line to see if they had it and how much it was. For some reason I wasn't automatically logged into my account to know I was a Prime member. They had it for $X dollars. When I went to order it, I had to log in. Low and behold the price was around $2 higher to order it. I logged back out and went back as an unknown shopper to be sure what happened was for real and sure enough it was $2 lower. Logged back in and yep back up $2. I found that if I put it in my shopping cart while not logged in then went to checkout and logged in at that time, I got the lower price. I have checked this regularly on purchases and it rarely happens, but I have seen it two other times. Just another way Amazon squeezes out a little more profit so ol' Jeff can keep his rocket ships fueled up.

 

[SlugSlinger]

I don’t like their search functions.

They don’t necessarily return the item, ie part number, I search for and the price listed is not necessarily the price of the item I want. If there are multiple options, it will list the lowest priced item, and that may be an accessory to the main item. They are manipulating purchases more and more.

Also, once an item is placed in the cart, when I scroll down, low and behold there are more options to choose from that weren’t returned when I searched.

 

[TerryMiller]

I'm a hard core amazon shopper. I do get disappointed occasionally, but getting stuff dropped off at my door when I live out in the sticks is a big plus. Costs over $5 in fuel to drive to town plus my time.
I got a notification that a sport drink concentrate with electrolytes I like to add to my water is backordered for a week, so thought I'd look around for more online opportunities. I pay $30 for a dozen bottles. The cheapest walmart had was double that for the exact same product.
So, guess I'll just man up and have my water straight and on the rocks every day without the foo-foo stuff until Amazon comes through.

I'm a pretty heavy Gatorade drinker, and most of the time, I was buying the concentrate powder at Walmart. The wife found Gatorade Zero at Amazon that comes in little packets. I keep three 20 ounce bottles and when I drink a flavor, I get the same flavor packet and pour it into about 12 ounces of water and shake. After a good shaking, I then finish filling the bottle and shake again.

Since there is no sugar in the Zero products, the packets are small and there is no need of measuring. I'm drinking the Glacial Freeze, Fruit Punch, and Glacial Cherry flavors.

Gatorade Zero at Amazon

 

[OKRuss]

I'm a pretty heavy Gatorade drinker, and most of the time, I was buying the concentrate powder at Walmart. The wife found Gatorade Zero at Amazon that comes in little packets. I keep three 20 ounce bottles and when I drink a flavor, I get the same flavor packet and pour it into about 12 ounces of water and shake. After a good shaking, I then finish filling the bottle and shake again.

Since there is no sugar in the Zero products, the packets are small and there is no need of measuring. I'm drinking the Glacial Freeze, Fruit Punch, and Glacial Cherry flavors.

Gatorade Zero at Amazon

I just wish one of these electrolyte drinks could be made without either high fructose corn syrup or sucralose. If any exist, please let me know.

As for Amazon returns, easy peasy if it's a free returns item - just print return page and take to a UPS store. now that's just easy if close to a UPS store...I get it. I only purchase free shipping and most, if not all, offer free returns and been used several times. I live in Tuttle so while not far from some shopping it is a ways for other items so if even same cost I'll go with Amazon for the 1-2 day delivery. Doesn't mean I don't want to support local businesses but at a point you have to weigh all options given the crazy prices.

 

[KOPBET]

Amazon makes China Mart (Wally) look like an amateur.

 

[2busy]

I used to be a Amazon prime member but most of the time I never got free 2 day shipping due to my location. They used to have a veteran discount for prime membership.

Look at the shipping cost member vs non member. Then look at the shipping cost vs free shipping for a couple days later delivery.

Being so far away from a hub I hardly ever got 2 day delivery with prime.

 

[Big House]

I spend a lot of money on Amazon, for work and home. The reason for this is because of the traffic and traffic alone. If I'm involved in an accident, it takes forever to get an appointment for an estimate and then it takes forever to get the vehicle repaired. That's a lot of hassle for me.

 

[Rooster1971]

Where is a local business anymore? Other than my small pharmacy and a little grocery store, I know none.