I used to also buy my Macs on Amazon, but they don’t even sell the new ipad!

Perhaps the failure was due to another cause? Like maybe your store’s uniqueness failed to draw a large enough market? That’s a large and common problem when serving a niche. Sometimes the niche is too small. Or.. maybe with some creativity you could in fact continue your business online and reach a larger market?

Exactly. Especially now that the iPhone app has the barcode scanner. I have stood inside a store, done the hands-on evaluation of a product, and placed the order on Amazon using my iPhone with a simple scan. Plus I think I checkout faster than it would take to go through the checkout line. Bonus, even though the free Prime shipping is 2-day, I’ve found that many times I get it the next day. Amazing!

Right now we are in a liquidation mentality. However, if goods sell at 50% – 90% of their value, do you think manufactures will rush to produce those goods again? By the time the glut of inventory is flushed out of the market, retailers and manufactures will have evaporated into thin air. Those that remain will offer a much narrower range of choices and they will have to raise prices to stay alive.

We have closed the doors of our store and don’t even have the funds to update our website. My expertise is with items rare and authentic; items that must be touched and seen to be understood. I am trying to work from home now. I am virtual now and struggling to recreate what we once had. I am brokenhearted – yet I too, like a deal. I understand the public’s motivation.

I still believe in beautiful destinations but the little guy is at a huge disadvantage. Independent businesses have been left dead or dying. Small profit driven retailers don’t have the resources to react and invest to the constantly changing technology. You need calm seas to navigate a boat.

Our business had a thirty year history, three employees and we provided a unique service. How will I do that from home? (Impossible to duplicate online.)

If you have the resources it can be done, but businesses like mine will not return. I want to open another store but I see no hope of surviving with the added burden of escalating taxes, rent (Chicago) and expenses. If I do reopen I will not be offering full medical benefits again ( a well-intentioned but a contributing factor to our demise.)

Sound business plans (and science) are based on extrapolating trends and using those to make predictions. You can’t make predictions when the curve is chaotic. We are just one in a sea of failed businesses that have been hit hard by the internet. Worse things can happen -just look at the world) Me? I’m still scratching my head. Check out my blog at Lisa Linen Lady. I have plenty to say there.

Another key reason is also the site’s recommendation engine, which has to be the gold standard. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve bought things on Amazon because of its recommendation engine – things I would not have bought otherwise and which I felt were in line with my interests, i.e, no buyer’s remorse. This is one of those features that’s good for both the customers and the company.

I think you make fair points and I wouldn’t argue on that. I am not sure if I really have an opinion on taxes — i pay mine and I assume that is what pays for most civic services, and not just the sales tax. As for Amazon squeezing its suppliers, that is unfortunate and short term thinking on their part.

By the way, I do support a lot of local businesses by buying local.

I buy a lot of things local – food and other perishables which are actually grown locally. It is big part of my daily spending. Personally, I cannot make myself to shop for clothing online mostly because I think there is something tactile and organic about clothes that one needs to experience with all senses.

Call me old fashioned in that sense.

What a wonderful, succinct reasoning behind Amazon Prime and its success.