Amazon continues to kill brick and mortar...

Gerhardt said:
I'm just the opposite. I don't buy online unless I have to, or if the price is great. Most things I want NOW. And I want the ability to see/feel a lot of things in person before committing to them.

I'm renovating an apt. now and am contemplating going from regular carpet to the 24" carpet tile squares so that I only have to replace the damaged areas after every tenant. I've looked at a lot of them online, read the reviews, etc. But a local store has them in stock and I went by last night to verify some of the review complaints. The major complaint is that the adhesive isn't very...well, adhesive. It's true. And I wanted to see if I could see the seams when placing them next to each other. Things I couldn't do if I bought online.

My pet peeve is people that do that, THEN go online to buy from someone else at a lower price. Thank you, but I'll pay more for the value I get with a local store having items available for me to look at.
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That's my general feeling as well. I also tend to avoid the big box stores whenever possible.
 
Don't get me wrong, I love Amazon as much as the next guy but if I am physically at a B&M store to buy pens am I gonna back off and go home to save three bucks?

I mean that is just plain weird dude, you need help :D
 
Sites like Amazon are fantastic for us. Our small town of 3,000 doesn't have many stores. We used to make frequent trips to a larger town about 40 miles away to buy stuff that we couldn't find here, and now we only go maybe once every 2 months or so. Getting things from amazon, at a lower price than a store, without burning gas, saving a minimum of 3 hours per trip to town, and it shows up on the porch is a huge win for us. The UPS guy is almost like family at this point :wink2:
 
SkyHog said:
Online dry cleaning is actually a pretty good idea now that you mention it though....sort of like a NetFlix for Dry Cleaning.
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Already have that sort of. Outside of 7-11 its a drop for dry cleaning, put your stuff in what looks like a locker. pay, and pick up the next day I think. Haven't used it, but for now the closest to online.
 
Well Amazons not doing the killing. The customers / consumers are. Don't blame Amazon. They provide an option , you chose
 
frfly172 said:
They are the future. People are always going to go with the cheapest choices. Then complain about the loss of jobs.
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Amazon doesn't have employees? Who knew? ;)

Love what the Internet has done for shopping.

Have had Prime a long time now and stuff just shows up at the door, fast. Can order something from my phone while busy and know it'll be there on the doorstep tomorrow.

Oh and pens: Just go grab a handful from any bank branch. They're not promotional crap that doesn't work right because they stock them so folks can sign things and be on their way.

They're usually quite good and the price can't be beat. And the tellers won't ever say anything about someone grabbing five of them. That'll last most people a year.

If you do the banking drive thru thing just ask them to toss a couple in the air tube thingy.
 
Just went to a Radio Shack Going-Out-Of-Business sale, where at 60%-70% off we picked up a few items. One more B&M bites the dust.

Coincidentally we just, I mean just, placed an Amazon order for a few misc items for just under $200 total.

We just find Amazon incredibly convenient.

Even bought some Amazon stock a few years back and its done pretty well! :yesnod:
 
Bill Jennings said:
I have a whole drawer full of motel/hotel pens.
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I saw something on tv several years ago about germs in hotel rooms. I'll never drink from an unwrapped glass again. But the #1 source of germs on hotel tv remotes is fecal matter. I guess technically that would be the #2 source.
 
Germs are everywhere, get over it. Only a few will do you harm, and the best way to prevent that is through developed immunity through small exposure.
 
Gerhardt said:
I saw something on tv several years ago about germs in hotel rooms. I'll never drink from an unwrapped glass again. But the #1 source of germs on hotel tv remotes is fecal matter. I guess technically that would be the #2 source.
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Thank you, Gerhardt. :vomit:

I've seen glasses being "rinsed" in the bathroom sink and put back in the counter.

And every time I pick up the remote I think about the #2 issue, and kick myself for not putting the remote into a Ziplock bag before using it.
 
nddons said:
Nope. Not even looking at it, or I'll be scratching my head all day.
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GOTCHA!

16615854208_cdddda332f_o.jpg
 
I'm all in with Amazon Prime. I didn't flinch at all when they raised the price from $80 to $100.

Still, there are times when I want to or have to buy local, even with free shipping.

Within the last six weeks:

1) I wanted an old fashioned grease pencil (aka 'china marker'). I went to Office Depot, couldn't find one. The Office Depot guy even called the next closest store but they didn't have one either. So I ordered from Amazon.

2) I need a new 23" LCD monitor for my wife's office. Ordered a View Sonic from Amazon that seem pretty good. When we got it it was fuzzy and not really useable. Amazon of course sent me a return shipping label, but still, it's a hassle to ship something large and fragile like a monitor.

Went to office Depot. They had a nice Dell monitor on sale for fifty bucks less than Amazon's ViewSonic. That store didn't have anything but their display model, but they called around and found one in another Austin store.

Amazon 1 : Office Depot 1

I think the lesson is that office supply stores need to pay enough to hire good salespeople, not just robot cash register operators.

They need to be aggressive in their pricing.

They should experiment with locating in less costly and more spartan retail locations. Because customers will go to the cheaper place that's looks like a warehouse over the posh high dollar retail facility. Retail space leases are ridiculously expensive, the invisible hand needs to slap the landlords of existing malls and strip centers.
 
N801BH said:
Wants ???:dunno::dunno:..:confused:..

I could have sworn I saw that Staples DID buy Office Depot AND Office Max and will close all those stores.......

So much for Staples being the
"Good Guys"
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They've been trying to merge these companies for years now. The feds have been throwing obstacles at them claiming it would for a monopoly. Har!
 
denverpilot said:
Oh and pens: Just go grab a handful from any bank branch. They're not promotional crap that doesn't work right because they stock them so folks can sign things and be on their way.

They're usually quite good and the price can't be beat. And the tellers won't ever say anything about someone grabbing five of them. That'll last most people a year.

If you do the banking drive thru thing just ask them to toss a couple in the air tube thingy.
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Speaking of online vs B&M, we shifted all our banking to Schwab long ago and jettisoned the local bank branches. My check gets direct deposited there. They reimburse our ATM fees in full each month and have mobile deposit for checks as well as electronic bill pay. That's 99.9% of our banking needs right there.

We had a number of local banks and credit unions we used to work with but I got tired of them constantly trying to upsell us on stuff. We did open a Chase account a few years ago only because they offered a rebate if you EFT your Chase mortgage payments through a checking account there. I hate dealing with them in person though - they have layers and layers of corporate policy and procedures that makes no sense. It took them almost 3 hours to set up a checking account for our condo association even though I was sitting there with all the information they could possibly need. Mind-numbing.
 
flyingron said:
They've been trying to merge these companies for years now. The feds have been throwing obstacles at them claiming it would for a monopoly. Har!
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Max bought Depot (or vice versa). I don't think that Staples has joined the team yet.
 
Gerhardt said:
I'm just the opposite. I don't buy online unless I have to, or if the price is great. Most things I want NOW. And I want the ability to see/feel a lot of things in person before committing to them.

I'm renovating an apt. now and am contemplating going from regular carpet to the 24" carpet tile squares so that I only have to replace the damaged areas after every tenant. I've looked at a lot of them online, read the reviews, etc. But a local store has them in stock and I went by last night to verify some of the review complaints. The major complaint is that the adhesive isn't very...well, adhesive. It's true. And I wanted to see if I could see the seams when placing them next to each other. Things I couldn't do if I bought online.

My pet peeve is people that do that, THEN go online to buy from someone else at a lower price. Thank you, but I'll pay more for the value I get with a local store having items available for me to look at.
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I agree with this in its entirety and I'm glad I didn't have to write it all out.

I rarely buy online.
 
flyingron said:
They've been trying to merge these companies for years now. The feds have been throwing obstacles at them claiming it would for a monopoly. Har!
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:lol: As long as Amazon is in business, I think that would prove to be a difficult opinion to make stick, unless Amazon is paying for it.;)
 
Bill Jennings said:
I have a whole drawer full of motel/hotel pens.
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Dad traveled heavily for business for years. We found an entire drawer full of hotel soaps all individually wrapped. I doubt he ever bought soap.

Karen wouldn't let me keep them. I'm enough of a cheapskate I was thinking it was a good score! LOL.

She donated them to a homeless shelter. Apparently there's people that collect them and give them to shelters as a regular thing. I didn't know that one, and I've worked in multiple shelters.
 
denverpilot said:
Dad traveled heavily for business for years. We found an entire drawer full of hotel soaps all individually wrapped. I doubt he ever bought soap.

Karen wouldn't let me keep them. I'm enough of a cheapskate I was thinking it was a good score! LOL.

She donated them to a homeless shelter. Apparently there's people that collect them and give them to shelters as a regular thing. I didn't know that one, and I've worked in multiple shelters.
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I know someone who told me they collected hotel soap and shampoo and donated them to a battered women's shelter. I also know someone who collects hotel shampoo and pours it into a big bottle. I wonder about the combination of scents. :D

Same person probably hasn't bought soap in a long time, like your dad.

Me, I just use it in the hotel but usually don't bring it home.
 
denverpilot said:
She donated them to a homeless shelter. Apparently there's people that collect them and give them to shelters as a regular thing. I didn't know that one, and I've worked in multiple shelters.
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We travel a lot and do that. A big bag every couple of months and the shelters seem very appreciative.

Nauga,
clean as a whistle
 
The funny part is, the hotel soaps are probably more fufu than anything I get for myself. I just order gold bars of Dial on Amazon when I'm low.

The Mrs on the other hand, has bottles and concoctions and potions of all sorts, that mostly have food names. Any other dude ever notice that? Apricot this and pear that and raspberry this...

You'd think she was in there making a fruit salad.

She probably didn't realize I thought the hotel stuff was a step up from my usual Dial when she made me put them all in a bag to get rid of them. LOL.

About the fanciest I get, is once in a while I'll find some shampoo that has some kinda mint in it. Not that I grow my hair out long enough that anyone would ever smell it.

Just helps me wake up in the morning when I accidentally get some in my eyes. Haha. Man that kills.

I'm not, and probably never will be, a morning person. Accidental mint in the eye pain works pretty good to move a morning shower along.
 
Oh. Sandalwood is nice. I never remember to order anything that smells like it but any time I end up somewhere that has that scented soap I always like it. Ha.
 
denverpilot said:
Dad traveled heavily for business for years. We found an entire drawer full of hotel soaps all individually wrapped. I doubt he ever bought soap.
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:rofl:

When Pop passed, we found a big plastic bin of various hotel soaps, we didn't buy soap for a year. :rofl:
 
I have an older brother who's the cheapest SoB you've ever met. He raised 7 kids (5 girls) on hotel soaps. The kids say they never saw store bought soaps and shampoos until they moved out of the house or were old enough to work and buy it for themselves.

But the best story? The one that proves you don't know a bigger tightwad than this guy?

He'd wait until he got to work in the morning before taking a dump so he didn't use any toilet paper at home.

He's really strange on a multitude of other fronts also.
 
timwinters said:
I have an older brother who's the cheapest SoB you've ever met. He raised 7 kids (5 girls) on hotel soaps. The kids say they never saw store bought soaps and shampoos until they moved out of the house or were old enough to work and buy it for themselves.

But the best story? The one that proves you don't know a bigger tightwad than this guy?

He'd wait until he got to work in the morning before taking a dump so he didn't use any toilet paper at home.

He's really strange on a multitude of other fronts also.
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:lol: That's taking cheap to the OCD level!:rofl:

Somebody should have given him a bidet for for his birthday long ago.;)
 
I'll admit that I take the soaps, shampoo and lotion from hotels. Before the invention of Keurig I'd also take the coffee and sugar packs we didn't use during our stay. But that's where I draw the line. My brother says he hasn't bought toilet paper in years. I don't mind taking the small stuff, but I don't think they ever intended for people to take the TP. Besides, I like the store-bought stuff that's embossed. :D

Mom worked at a motel for a bit when I was a kid. The things people steal would amaze you. If it's not nailed down, for some reason people think it's fair game. Irons, towels and wash cloths are a given. Hairdryers unscrewed from the wall and taken, TVs, trash cans, mirrors, artwork (and that's being loose with the term).
 
Gerhardt said:
I'll admit that I take the soaps, shampoo and lotion from hotels.
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I take the soaps and pens, keeps me in a good supply of Bic and Papermate stick pens. IMO most hotel shampoos suck and aren't worth the bother to take. I bring my own shampoo, the only time I use the crappy hotel stuff is when I'm flying commercial.

That is where I draw the line. TP, towels, etc., is over the line in my book.
 
If the hotel has good shampoo/conditioner, and my travel bag needs a restock (I usually keep 3 sets as complete stock) I'll toss them in. If they have good packets of instant coffee, I'll take those too. That's about it. I am pretty much the opposite of a hoarder, if I don't need it and have a use for it, I don't want it. I guess it comes from the vagabond lifestyle since you often have to relocate with everything you own, or pay for storage.

Hotel pens they want you to take, that's why they pay for the screen work.

One hotel I was at had the most excellent towels, I asked if I could buy one, the manager said to just take one, but thanks for asking.
 
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Henning said:
Hotel pens they want you to take, that's why they pay for the screen work.
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Yeah it they don't have to actually WORK properly like the bank ones do. They're decorative. We all check out automatically these days without signing anything.

The bank has to keep the teller line moving so if they get a bad batch of cheap pens they throw them away and get ones that work. :)

Alway go with the free bank pens. Or mortgage company pens if you can get 'em. Those things get a workout at every closing. Ha.
 
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