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We buy basically everything other than hot food from Amazon. Why is toilet paper special? Going in person to a warehouse style store like a grocery store or de

We buy basically everything other than hot food from Amazon. Why is toilet paper special? Going in person to a warehouse style store like a grocery store or department store is becoming a quaint experience from the past (for us at least).

everyone 5y ago
Do you live in a weird area? Like very remote or extremely low density or something? Or are you just upper class? I would assume getting all your groceries delivered from amazon would be significantly more expensive than buying them from a supermarket.
- gwbas1c 5y ago
  A lot of times when I go to the grocery store I compare prices. Amazon is usually similar. (With free shipping) I can either add an item to a grocery list on my phone, or I can just order it from Amazon. I might as well just order it and "be done."
- kube-system 5y ago
  For a while, Amazon delivery from Whole Foods didn't have any extra fees with Prime, I believe.
- showerst 5y ago
  It may be the opposite -- if you live in a city with amazon fresh, the prices are about the same as the grocery store. Various amazon sales/credits (and cashback from an amazon credit card) usually offset the delivery price. If you live somewhere where they fulfill whole foods, then those prices are the same as well. FWIW I live in a city and don't have a ton of storage space, so getting bulk prices from a warehouse store is impractical. TP and Paper towels come on subscribe and save and are cheaper than the corner store, and roughly the same as the grocery store. I still shop in person most of the time because I like to pick my produce and the substitutions tend to be a mess, but delivery is great when things are busy or we want a bigger order.
- ravenstine 5y ago
  In the LA area, I've noticed that the vast majority of grocery store customers are elderly. It's common for me to be the only person under 50, besides sometimes mothers with kids in tow or some dude buying beer. Whether I'm on the westside or some random suburb, it's like this. Once enough of the elderly die off, so will many of these grocery stores, I think. One of the few exceptions is Trader Joe's for some reason. Even I have been buying more groceries online just to avoid the abysmal experience of grocery stores.
  - hunterb123 5y ago
    Very strange. So people buy their TP online and get it shipped to them with more paper around them than it takes to make the rolls themselves? Opening, breaking down and disposing the box seems much more work and wasteful. I understand groceries delivered by Instacart etc., but I don't understand ordering bulk non-perishable consumables online when a one time trip to a wholesale store like Sams would be much cheaper and "greener".
    - toast0 5y ago
      > Very strange. So people buy their TP online and get it shipped to them with more paper around them than it takes to make the rolls themselves? Opening, breaking down and disposing the box seems much more work and wasteful. TP ships to grocery stores in cardboard boxes too; if you buy the large sizes, they just put the shipping label on that box.
      - hunterb123 5y ago
        - Stores could recycle/reuse the boxes a lot easier and maybe they do. - You don't have to handle the breaking down and disposing yourself. - How many people doing this are buying 96ct boxes? - It takes a ridiculous amount of space for last mile delivery especially if they are buying the 96ct box which would be the closest to efficiency of a wholesale store, but still not as good. I'm not a eco-nazi so I don't really care to squabble over emissions, but it's a bit silly, do people in LA not do wholesale runs a couple times a year for bulk items? It just seems wasteful for the delivery system and yourself, financially and otherwise.
- acheron 5y ago
  You would assume wrongly, then.
  - everyone 5y ago
    Maybe not in some kind of dystopian mad-max land I suppose.
- mortehu 5y ago
  I live in lower Manhattan. Stores here aren't particularly cheap, but I haven't done a thorough comparison. Even if the stores were cheaper, the time savings would cover a pretty big difference. Having kids certainly increases the value of time.
- putnambr 5y ago
  These responses are really unsettling to me. For how much people complain about Amazon's power and unfair treatment of workers, how it ruins small business, moves money out of rural areas, how shipping price increases are driving inflation, how bad shipping/Amazon is for the environment... it's jolting to see people say they order not only a lightweight but high volume material like toilet paper, but also the majority of their groceries to their homes. Everyone I know shops at WinCo, Fred Meyer, Trader Joes, and the Co-Op. The only thing I've ever considered hitting the 'subscribe and save' button on is a medication for my dog.
  - mortehu 5y ago
    Why exactly do you think in person shopping is better for the environment? Studies usually come out in favor of delivery. On top of that we live in an apartment building, and a single truck makes deliveries for dozens of, if not a hundred, households (there are 250 units, and multiple trucks arrive each day). Imagine if all of us drove cars to accomplish this instead.
  - siva7 5y ago
    What exactly is more economical on owning a car and driving to the grocery store than just ordering it?
    - rsj_hn 5y ago
      If all you did with a car was get groceries, it would probably be more economical to just order delivery. Most people use their car for a lot more than that, though.

everyone 5y ago

Do you live in a weird area? Like very remote or extremely low density or something? Or are you just upper class? I would assume getting all your groceries delivered from amazon would be significantly more expensive than buying them from a supermarket.

gwbas1c 5y ago
A lot of times when I go to the grocery store I compare prices. Amazon is usually similar. (With free shipping) I can either add an item to a grocery list on my phone, or I can just order it from Amazon. I might as well just order it and "be done."
kube-system 5y ago
For a while, Amazon delivery from Whole Foods didn't have any extra fees with Prime, I believe.
showerst 5y ago
It may be the opposite -- if you live in a city with amazon fresh, the prices are about the same as the grocery store. Various amazon sales/credits (and cashback from an amazon credit card) usually offset the delivery price. If you live somewhere where they fulfill whole foods, then those prices are the same as well. FWIW I live in a city and don't have a ton of storage space, so getting bulk prices from a warehouse store is impractical. TP and Paper towels come on subscribe and save and are cheaper than the corner store, and roughly the same as the grocery store. I still shop in person most of the time because I like to pick my produce and the substitutions tend to be a mess, but delivery is great when things are busy or we want a bigger order.
ravenstine 5y ago
In the LA area, I've noticed that the vast majority of grocery store customers are elderly. It's common for me to be the only person under 50, besides sometimes mothers with kids in tow or some dude buying beer. Whether I'm on the westside or some random suburb, it's like this. Once enough of the elderly die off, so will many of these grocery stores, I think. One of the few exceptions is Trader Joe's for some reason. Even I have been buying more groceries online just to avoid the abysmal experience of grocery stores.
- hunterb123 5y ago
  Very strange. So people buy their TP online and get it shipped to them with more paper around them than it takes to make the rolls themselves? Opening, breaking down and disposing the box seems much more work and wasteful. I understand groceries delivered by Instacart etc., but I don't understand ordering bulk non-perishable consumables online when a one time trip to a wholesale store like Sams would be much cheaper and "greener".
  - toast0 5y ago
    > Very strange. So people buy their TP online and get it shipped to them with more paper around them than it takes to make the rolls themselves? Opening, breaking down and disposing the box seems much more work and wasteful. TP ships to grocery stores in cardboard boxes too; if you buy the large sizes, they just put the shipping label on that box.
    - hunterb123 5y ago
      - Stores could recycle/reuse the boxes a lot easier and maybe they do. - You don't have to handle the breaking down and disposing yourself. - How many people doing this are buying 96ct boxes? - It takes a ridiculous amount of space for last mile delivery especially if they are buying the 96ct box which would be the closest to efficiency of a wholesale store, but still not as good. I'm not a eco-nazi so I don't really care to squabble over emissions, but it's a bit silly, do people in LA not do wholesale runs a couple times a year for bulk items? It just seems wasteful for the delivery system and yourself, financially and otherwise.
acheron 5y ago
You would assume wrongly, then.
- everyone 5y ago
  Maybe not in some kind of dystopian mad-max land I suppose.
mortehu 5y ago
I live in lower Manhattan. Stores here aren't particularly cheap, but I haven't done a thorough comparison. Even if the stores were cheaper, the time savings would cover a pretty big difference. Having kids certainly increases the value of time.
putnambr 5y ago
These responses are really unsettling to me. For how much people complain about Amazon's power and unfair treatment of workers, how it ruins small business, moves money out of rural areas, how shipping price increases are driving inflation, how bad shipping/Amazon is for the environment... it's jolting to see people say they order not only a lightweight but high volume material like toilet paper, but also the majority of their groceries to their homes. Everyone I know shops at WinCo, Fred Meyer, Trader Joes, and the Co-Op. The only thing I've ever considered hitting the 'subscribe and save' button on is a medication for my dog.
- mortehu 5y ago
  Why exactly do you think in person shopping is better for the environment? Studies usually come out in favor of delivery. On top of that we live in an apartment building, and a single truck makes deliveries for dozens of, if not a hundred, households (there are 250 units, and multiple trucks arrive each day). Imagine if all of us drove cars to accomplish this instead.
- siva7 5y ago
  What exactly is more economical on owning a car and driving to the grocery store than just ordering it?
  - rsj_hn 5y ago
    If all you did with a car was get groceries, it would probably be more economical to just order delivery. Most people use their car for a lot more than that, though.