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It's a bit confusing to me why people use amazon in europe... Amazon where I live delivers in 1-2+ weeks and has prices which are similar or more then local sh

It's a bit confusing to me why people use amazon in europe... Amazon where I live delivers in 1-2+ weeks and has prices which are similar or more then local shops. Local shops deliver next day, have excellent warranty and customer service and prices are the same or lower... Also no force pushing of prime or getting nickle and dimed for delivery. There's also the issue of not finding anything good on amazon (lots of knock offs), whereas other shops have curated lists with nice filtering and advice...

Tarsul 4y ago
Amazon was basically the best internet shopping experience in Germany between 2002 and 2015 or so. Initally free shipping for everything over 20€ (and books), easy returns, trustworthy reviews, great prices, good brands, giant catalogue of products... Nowadays, not so much. Also other retailers have caught up, but still the ease (and good memories) of shopping at amazon remain and thus people still somehow like it. But it won't last if they don't get their shit together. There's no lock-in like in social media (and people in Germany don't like paying extra for prime).
ferongr 4y ago
Customer service. Something sold by Amazon is defective, you get a return label and then a replacent or money returned to your card. Something sold by a local B&M is defective, it has to be "checked by the repair department/importer/subcontracted local service center", for a coue of weeks to a month, then if the people holding your stuff decide to ghost you you're SOL. And good luck returning things that "technically work" but not really, like a toaster that warms up but doesn't toast bread, or a non-stick pan that sticks.
- adriancr 4y ago
  One local shop has 30 days return period, another has 100 days, no questions asked, you get money back. (i usually just say i dont like it and thats the end of it) In EU by law anything sold online can be returned in 14 days. (with some exclusions like personal hygiene) So i don't see how B&M can skip the 14 days, I could report them to consumer protection agency and they'd get massive fines. Ironically, amazon is in the 14 day bracket for no questions and 30 days for defective... so worse... Customer service - I can contact local shops on whatsapp, I can drop by thei physical locations, etc

Tarsul 4y ago

Amazon was basically the best internet shopping experience in Germany between 2002 and 2015 or so. Initally free shipping for everything over 20€ (and books), easy returns, trustworthy reviews, great prices, good brands, giant catalogue of products... Nowadays, not so much. Also other retailers have caught up, but still the ease (and good memories) of shopping at amazon remain and thus people still somehow like it. But it won't last if they don't get their shit together. There's no lock-in like in social media (and people in Germany don't like paying extra for prime).

ferongr 4y ago

Customer service. Something sold by Amazon is defective, you get a return label and then a replacent or money returned to your card. Something sold by a local B&M is defective, it has to be "checked by the repair department/importer/subcontracted local service center", for a coue of weeks to a month, then if the people holding your stuff decide to ghost you you're SOL. And good luck returning things that "technically work" but not really, like a toaster that warms up but doesn't toast bread, or a non-stick pan that sticks.

adriancr 4y ago
One local shop has 30 days return period, another has 100 days, no questions asked, you get money back. (i usually just say i dont like it and thats the end of it) In EU by law anything sold online can be returned in 14 days. (with some exclusions like personal hygiene) So i don't see how B&M can skip the 14 days, I could report them to consumer protection agency and they'd get massive fines. Ironically, amazon is in the 14 day bracket for no questions and 30 days for defective... so worse... Customer service - I can contact local shops on whatsapp, I can drop by thei physical locations, etc