Ask HN: Replacing Amazon Shopping | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Replacing Amazon Shopping

2 pointsJadoJodo10 comments

A recent thread[0] about Amazon reviews got me to thinking: I'm not so married to Amazon services as a whole (Alexa, Prime Shipping, Whole Foods, etc) that I would be unwilling to drop them. What I _am_ (seemingly) married to is the crazy level of selection.

For example, I need a tool to clean out the dryer vent in my home. Local stores (Home Depot, Lowes, Ace, Mom'n'Pop, etc) all have tools for just such an occasion and often at a comparable price. But Amazon has 20+ in varying lengths, materials, designs, tiers (Git-R-Done <---> Artisanal) and approaches. The same can be said for almost any other category.

Have any of you found alternatives that solve this particular issue? Or are we simply doomed to choosing between either a) supporting Amazon's dominance or b) going back to the world of ACME Dryer Cleaner? Is there a middle ground?

[0] - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25038734

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There won't be a single source that has the breadth of Amazon's selection. But I'll often use Amazon to find the specific thing I want and grab the model number. Then I can search the manufacturer's website to see if they'll sell it to me directly. If not, Google it (or ebay or Cragslist or Mercari or...) which is much easier once you know exactly what you're looking for.

There is a good chance the manufacturer or other suppliers are using Amazon fulfillment

One approach I have taken is ordering some things from the manufacturer directly. For example, I really like Laird Superfood[0] and Duke Cannon[1] products so I will buy direct from them, but there are a lot of other categories with which I am unfamiliar. Perhaps there's some level of FOMO[2] + Overchoice[3].

[0] - https://lairdsuperfood.com/

[1] - https://dukecannon.com/

[2] - https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Fear_of_missing_out

[3] - https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Overchoice

Do your research online -- which can include looking at Amazon -- and then order what makes sense to you via whatever channel you think is appropriately ethical or whatever.

When I do order online, it's often through Walmart. They will either deliver to my address or deliver to the nearest store where I can pick it up in person without having to pay delivery fees.

For my needs, Walmart is the place that has the solutions that most matter to me. I almost never use Amazon.

I don't really understand why people order so much from it and then bemoan its dominance. From where I sit, it looks like a self-inflicted injury in most cases and I find the entire thing somewhat baffling. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Amazon pushed a lot of competition out. Just because someone doesn't like Amazon doesn't mean there's any alternative. https://www.geekwire.com/2020/hearing-documents-reveal-amazo...

I'm aware they are pretty cut throat.

I'm not looking to attack anyone. I genuinely find it baffling.

And maybe I find it baffling because, for example, my dad fought in the front lines of two wars and my parents helped multiple relatives escape communist East Germany. And I've lived without a car in the US for more than a decade, which is a hard row to hoe, but it's gotten easier over time "with practice" so to speak.

I have ordered stuff from Amazon under circumstances where I literally couldn't find it elsewhere. But most of what I hear is not that people literally have zero other options. It's more like what people are saying in this discussion: It's more convenient than driving to the nearest big box store or it's got better selection than any one venue.

I fail to comprehend how that merits the amount of stress people seem to have over the issue. Rejecting Amazon for most purchases is not on par with, say, trying to escape communist East Germany.

If you object to their crappy policies, you do your research and you buy it elsewhere if you can find it elsewhere. And if you literally can find no other options, then you buy it from Amazon and start letting people know "I could really use another supplier for this here widget. I hate Amazon and I buy widgets regularly. I'm willing to pay extra for ethically sourced widgets. If you hear of something, let me know!"

Or, alternately, pressure Amazon to clean up their act. (Or do both.)

My goto is Amazon because of the prime shipping cost. E.g. pay a monthly fee and get "free" shipping. It's so convenient not to have to worry about that cost.

I've looked stuff up on Etsy before and the shipping charges were crazy. I wanted to buy about 50 euro worth of balloons.. the shipping would have cost another 50 euro.

Supporting Amazon’s competition is the way to go. The next one I know of is shopify that is essentially an ecommerce platform hosting thousands of small stores. But they don’t have the vision to unite them (yet).

I live 30 minutes from any major store that may or may not have what I want - so I'd have to visit several stores. Waste of time and gas. I can go online and get more selection and have it in 2 or 3 days.

It's an illusion of choice. All those tools are made in the same factory in china.

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