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How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

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Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#201

Post by abalashov »

stevenwei wrote: post #192
msutherl wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Great for consumers like us, but terrible for all of the people who work ridiculous hours under constant stress on warehouse floors or do deliveries day in and day out. I try to buy from brick & mortar shops purely because running a shop is a job that has a shred of dignity left in it.

I can't help but think that both of those jobs (warehouse/delivery) will be obsoleted in the near future with the development of more advanced robotics.

Maybe, but technocratic types have been proclaiming the imminent death of human involvement in logistics, at the hands of robotics, for many, many years now.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#202

Post by jpxxx »

eshvk wrote: post #83
ippisl wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like shoes ? and clothes ? those are starting to move online using some interesting technologies[1][2] and there's no reason to believe that we won't find a way to help with buying other physical items. [1] using the kinect to virtually measure clothes on your TV. [2] using a variable robot to show you how a specific garment would look on your specific measurements.

The Zappos (owned by Amazon) model is kind of interesting too. They actively encourage you to return shoes that you don't like for any arbitrary reason, thereby making it easier at least from the consumer's perspective of avoiding the situation where he/she would be stuck with a purchase that doesn't fit them or something.

I have on good authority that their return rates reach 40%.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#203

Post by secretcurse »

rdl wrote: post #107
robterrell wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Used to love the 993, but now I've switched to the Pearl Izumi for running, which I discovered through Zappos and their awesome return policy. Watching my wife goes through the Zappos process, and being an overall internet hermit, made me want to try it out. I bought four pairs of shoes in what seemed like the best size and width for me (there is good information about brand size trends on their site), got them the n…

I really prefer the NB 856. I've never found Zappos to have particularly good selection of the shoes I buy (men's dress shoes, boots of various kinds, etc). They're particularly bad for boots. Their main focus seems low to mid range female shoes.

A good pair of men's dress shoes or boots should last for several years. Hell, a good pair of boots should last decades for most people. Low to mid range female shoes won't last more than a few months. It definitely makes good sense to focus on selling low to mid range female shoes when your primary concern is volume.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#204

Post by gaius »

cglee wrote: post #94
wheels wrote: post #54

Amazon has been doing this in parts of Germany since 2009. The results haven't been nearly as dramatic as the article predicts. As others have indicated, the limiting factor isn't so much speed of delivery as the inclination to physically inspect items before buying them. That said, Zappos, now a part of Amazon, has succeeded in doing that in one of the markets that tends the most towards such. Even so, there are sti…

When Zappos first came out I thought they'd tank. I purchase new basketball/running shoes every 6months, and never ever make a new purchase without trying it on. Playing basketball or running with an even slightly uncomfortable shoe can lead to blistering, back problems, ankle sprains, etc. But my gf at the time thought it was brilliant. What I learned was that a lot of women's shoes are purchased based on anything e…

The best running shoes are the ones that suit your gait, it is definitely worth going to a reputable store (e.g. Runner's Need here in the UK) and having gait analysis done. It's free, but because I'm a decent bloke I would never get their recommendation then buy it online, I buy it in the store.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#205

Post by rat87 »

einhverfr wrote: post #74
suresk wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed, when you look at surveys that ask people why they prefer shopping online, things like "24/7 convenience", "saves time", and "better selection" usually end up ahead of "costs less money, even after shipping" and taxes are usually a small part of that. The lack of sales tax hurts local tax entities far worse than it hurts Amazon's competitors.

> The lack of sales tax hurts local tax entities far worse than it hurts Amazon's competitors. Except that proposals to collect online sales tax would hurt local retailers even worse if they followed the law.

Not because Amazon would be paying local sales tax, because their new business plans with 1 day shipping might(!!) bring them into more competition with local retailers. States putting pressure on Amazon to collect sales tax may have encouraged Amazon into this plan but based on their past opposition I think it has more to do with their guesses about the market.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#206

Post by CitizenKane »

msutherl wrote: post #176
CitizenKane wrote: post #171

This is already happening in China. Because of the nature of shipping companies here it's not unusual to buy a product (typically off of http://taobao.com ) and get it later that day or the next day. Many of these businesses are based in Shanghai and if you live there delivery happens nearly instantly. One online shop, http://cheers-in.com/ delivers cold beer in Shanghai in 1 - 2 hours from an order. Stuff like this…

Great for consumers like us, but terrible for all of the people who work ridiculous hours under constant stress on warehouse floors or do deliveries day in and day out. I try to buy from brick & mortar shops purely because running a shop is a job that has a shred of dignity left in it.

The nature of this is actually a bit different here (here being China). Undoubtedly, some of these products are coming from distribution centers. However, many of them come from small brick and mortar shops and they use this as a means to augment their business. It's pretty common for product pages to also feature the shops where the products are being sold from.

The distribution is generally done by courier companies. It's usually a guy on a bicycle with a bunch of packages that ends up either picking up the package or delivering it on the end. I've seen just about every means of transportation imaginable used to transport packages.

Of course, there are still people losing out and there are still distribution centers in the middle. Plus, there are the people working on the factory floors that are making the products in the first place.

Ordering online is incredibly convenient and it gives access to such a wide range of products that I can't imagine it going away any time soon. I think that in any system someone is going to end up losing out, but hopefully in the future the losses can at least be minimized through robotics and other technology.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#207

Post by gaius »

cglace wrote: post #124
latch wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

China hasn't been a 3rd world country for some time. It isn't even close. Sure there are massive pockets of poverty (with 1 billion people, there are massive pockets of everything)...but visit India or parts of Africa if you want to see what 3rd world is.

If we were going by the original definitions of first world, second world third world. China would be a second world country since it was aligned with Russia and not the US.

There was no first and second, it's third world as in "third person". NATO, Warsaw Pact, everyone else.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#208

Post by bobds »

btilly wrote: post #195
icebraining wrote: post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, everyone who deals with the general public knows how unstressful and dignifying that is. That is, besides having to deal with blatant sexism[1], extreme ignorance[2], elderly genitalia[3], stealing[4], destruction of property[5], physical violence[6], bigotry[7], etc. [1]: http://notalwaysright.com/man-up-and-let-a-woman-fix-it/2136... [2]: http://notalwaysright.com/spyware-is-strength/21253 [3]: http://notalway…

If you like that sort of thing, http://www.actsofgord.com/ is a bit old but very, very cathartic.

Thanks for the link. I remember being endlessly entertained by Gord's stories, I'll have to revisit them one of these days.

Re: How Amazon’s ambitious new push for same-day delivery will destroy local retail

#209

Post by speleding »

gaius wrote: post #207
cglace wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If we were going by the original definitions of first world, second world third world. China would be a second world country since it was aligned with Russia and not the US.

There was no first and second, it's third world as in "third person". NATO, Warsaw Pact, everyone else.

Yes, there was a first and second world, it used to denote then Nato and USSR block respectively, that's how the third world got its name. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_World
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