Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
theguardian.com
Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
1–10 of 54 posts
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#2The media really seem to love pushing downright naive logistical assumptions trying to make online shopping a villain while expecting us to believe our own cars and brick and mortar store's logistics run on pixie farts. You never see them talking about the impact of junk mail.
To be frank at this point it feels like they are trying to extort ad money to stop negative press coverage.
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#3The media really seem to love pushing downright naive logistical assumptions trying to make online shopping a villain while expecting us to believe our own cars and brick and mortar store's logistics run on pixie farts. You never see them talking about the impact of junk mail. To be frank at this point it feels like they are trying to extort ad money to stop negative press coverage.
I think that assessment is unfair to the author. The article even talks about the warehouses and logistics in a pre-same-day shipping world, and compares it to the pace and scale required by the new delivery model.
The point I took from the author is that the expectation of same-day or even two hour shipping is erasing the barriers to consumption. There's a big difference between a weekly walk to shop or drive to the mall, and 24/7 instant delivery with just a click. It's no secret that the pitch on fast delivery speed is that people will consume more.
Anecdotally, many people I know who have Prime seems to have steady streams of packages arriving at their door - snacks for the kids one day, a new sweater the next, a package of toilet paper the next - with the logic that they have paid for the delivery, they might as well use it. Each in a separate trip, box etc. And if an item is incorrect or damaged, they often don't even bother to return it, they will just order something else.
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#4The media really seem to love pushing downright naive logistical assumptions trying to make online shopping a villain while expecting us to believe our own cars and brick and mortar store's logistics run on pixie farts. You never see them talking about the impact of junk mail. To be frank at this point it feels like they are trying to extort ad money to stop negative press coverage.
I think that assessment is unfair to the author. The article even talks about the warehouses and logistics in a pre-same-day shipping world, and compares it to the pace and scale required by the new delivery model. The point I took from the author is that the expectation of same-day or even two hour shipping is erasing the barriers to consumption. There's a big difference between a weekly walk to shop or drive to the…
I consume less with online shopping.
With groceries, I plan out my week's meals with the Paprika app, shoot the list of ingredients over to notes, and then order only what is on that list, which is delivered to my door.
No more "hmm, this looks interesting" as I'm wasting my time walking up and down aisles specifically designed to make me spend more.
My fridge and cupboard now look almost empty, despite having the week's shopping in it because I don't have jars and boxes of HFCS-laden garbage that I bought on a whim.
As far as non-consumable goods go, I spend the time I used to waste driving to and from stores and trying to find objects hidden in a sea of shelves finding written and video reviews of big-ticket items and I do not purchase anything unless I know it has passed the muster of several trusted reviewers, has all of the features I want, have seen it from every angle, know its precise dimensions, and know it has documentation and patches/upgrades available on the manufacturer's website.
Can't really do that looking at a box on a shelf in a store.
Regarding a steady stream of deliveries, it is too easy to set up a once-a-week delivery, at least with Amazon Prime. I set mine to Saturday.
People who impulsively buy things online are the same people who would have gone to the dollar store for "shopping therapy" pre-online shopping and come home with a basket full of cheap Chinese crap.
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#5I think it is fair that the increased usage of public infrastructure warrants a substantial increase in taxes
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#6The media really seem to love pushing downright naive logistical assumptions trying to make online shopping a villain while expecting us to believe our own cars and brick and mortar store's logistics run on pixie farts. You never see them talking about the impact of junk mail. To be frank at this point it feels like they are trying to extort ad money to stop negative press coverage.
I think that assessment is unfair to the author. The article even talks about the warehouses and logistics in a pre-same-day shipping world, and compares it to the pace and scale required by the new delivery model. The point I took from the author is that the expectation of same-day or even two hour shipping is erasing the barriers to consumption. There's a big difference between a weekly walk to shop or drive to the…
I don't know how accurate this theory of mine is since I've done zero research and I'm not an expert on anything, but one could make the argument that one delivery doesn't have the same impact as one individual's trip to the store.
Let's say I take a weekly trip to the store in my car. I also have to park it at the store during my trip, meaning the store must use extra land for parking spaces.
Does the delivery truck drive on that same exact trip for each delivery? No, it's already on a computer-optimized delivery route and it will stop and deliver things to my neighbors.
As far as increased consumption, I wonder how in-store retail tactics compare to online shopping. Sure, I might be tempted by the lack of friction by online purchases, but when you go to the store there are temptations galore. You pass aisles with endcaps of stuff you don't need, you pass the beer and liquor section, and perhaps all the things you want are placed at the back of the store - on purpose, so you pass other items.
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#7I think it is fair that the increased usage of public infrastructure warrants a substantial increase in taxes
And the correct activity to tax is the delivery itself, or some close proxy for it. Ideally taxed to the business doing the delivery so they have a harder time faking lower prices or otherwise making it seem like the higher costs are for any reason other than the way they're doing business.
While we're at it we could make trucking companies pay for the actual amount of wear they put on the roads and the costs to build truck-supporting infrastructure. And I'd like a pony.
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#8I think it is fair that the increased usage of public infrastructure warrants a substantial increase in taxes
And the correct activity to tax is the delivery itself , or some close proxy for it. Ideally taxed to the business doing the delivery so they have a harder time faking lower prices or otherwise making it seem like the higher costs are for any reason other than the way they're doing business. While we're at it we could make trucking companies pay for the actual amount of wear they put on the roads and the costs to bui…
good point, the tax on a truck should be proportional to the wear and tear of that truck on the road
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#9Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think that assessment is unfair to the author. The article even talks about the warehouses and logistics in a pre-same-day shipping world, and compares it to the pace and scale required by the new delivery model. The point I took from the author is that the expectation of same-day or even two hour shipping is erasing the barriers to consumption. There's a big difference between a weekly walk to shop or drive to the…
I consume less with online shopping. With groceries, I plan out my week's meals with the Paprika app, shoot the list of ingredients over to notes, and then order only what is on that list, which is delivered to my door. No more "hmm, this looks interesting" as I'm wasting my time walking up and down aisles specifically designed to make me spend more. My fridge and cupboard now look almost empty, despite having the we…
> No more "hmm, this looks interesting" as I'm wasting my time walking up and down aisles specifically designed to make me spend more.
When it comes to fresh produce, though, this is exactly how I shop. We've gotten accustomed to buying things in any season and then wonder why strawberries look beautiful but taste like a cucumber. It's not until I'm at the store that I remember what fruits and vegetables are in season.
So then I buy what's in season, seems tasty and what I think I can use for the week. If it turns out I over-bought, I find out during mid-week assessment of the fridge, and repackage certain things for the freezer, prioritizing what's best fresh.
And this becomes a fun time to experiment with cooking. I have A, B, C, which were all bought with the intent to be seperate dishes. Can they be combined in a novel way? Then you're no longer following recipes, you're having fun, making new things and get to enjoy the result.
For example, that's how I found out that dumping a handful of garlic cloves in chicken thighs slow-cooked in olive oil produces a nice sweatness. Another day I tried the same but pressure-cooked due to time constraints and while the chicken was ok, the garlic didn't produce that amazing sweetness.
Re: Our home delivery habit reshaped the world
#10Earlier quoted context omitted.
And the correct activity to tax is the delivery itself , or some close proxy for it. Ideally taxed to the business doing the delivery so they have a harder time faking lower prices or otherwise making it seem like the higher costs are for any reason other than the way they're doing business. While we're at it we could make trucking companies pay for the actual amount of wear they put on the roads and the costs to bui…
good point, the tax on a truck should be proportional to the wear and tear of that truck on the road
That's the entire point of vehicle tax and fuel duty. The more you use the roads the more fuel you buy, the more fuel you buy the more tax you pay.