Overstock to Amazon: "If they go to 10 cents, I'll go to 9 cents"

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

I spend pretty big bucks on computer equipment, so I shop around. My biggest splurge is dining out. I'd rather spend $50 on a dinner to remember than $10-$20 on mediocre.

Not me. $3 on Wendy's value menu with the savings dumped into my gadget fund

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Not me. $3 on Wendy's value menu with the savings dumped into my gadget fund

My gadget fund is bottomless, anyway. Of course, I only buy what I need.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

My gadget fund is bottomless, anyway. Of course, I only buy what I need.

If I lived in Taiwan, where our younger son is teaching English and says you can get a great meal for US$3, maybe my gadget fund would also be bottomless. Here, you have to pay around $8 for something really, really good, and if you are ever in my area, here is where you can get it:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/mong-shil-tong-tong-upper-darby

[HansTWN]

Originally Posted by SteveEisenberg

If I lived in Taiwan, where our younger son is teaching English and says you can get a great meal for US$3, maybe my gadget fund would also be bottomless. Here, you have to pay around $8 for something really, really good, and if you are ever in my area, here is where you can get it:

http://www.yelp.com/biz/mong-shil-tong-tong-upper-darby

Actually, it is quite expensive here. (obviously it also greatly depends what area you live in and how you live) Housing, cars, high-end restaurants are more expensive than in the US. Gadgets are among the few things that aren't, actually. $3 for a great meal that must be on a stall at the night market, not in a restaurant. A bowl of beef noodles will run you $4-5. Easy to pay $100.- per person at a very good restaurant, though $20-30 is probaly average.

Not that I am into getting every new thing or upgrade that comes out, anyway. I have to be able to sneak it past my wife....

[K. Molen]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Walmart hasn't raised its prices yet they are being undercut by the Dollar Store chains on the low end and challenged by Target at their sweetspot.

But wasn't that Andrew H's whole point?

"There is *always* competition in the retail space"

Or were you just agreeing with him?

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by K. Molen

But wasn't that Andrew H's whole point?

"There is *always* competition in the retail space"

Or were you just agreeing with him?

Agreeing, of course.
People act like Walmart is the lowest of the low when the reality is there are several layers of even lower-priced vendors.
It's why Walmart changed their motto from "Always the low price".

Their issue isn't Walmart's (or Amazon's) prices; it's their size.
And success.

As I've said before, some people despise success.
Just ask J.K. Rowling, who went from "plucky exemplar" to "lucky hack" merely by being too successful.

[frahse]

The shopper must always be vigilant.

One thing I have noticed lately is that it is harder to find things on Amazon. The high end things come up easier than the lower priced items.

I just noticed that in "gloves."

I actually wanted a couple of dozen simple thick cotton gloves of a kind that has been around for centuries and I couldn't find them. These were for a temporary work crew. I had expected to find them for about $1.00 each in quantity. Anyway I went to Walmart and bought $2.00 leather palmed gloves, but I know if these are tossed into a washing machine they will deteriorate.

Later I went back to Amazon and tried some different keyword searches and found more cotton gloves that will probably do.

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by frahse

The shopper must always be vigilant.

One thing I have noticed lately is that it is harder to find things on Amazon. The high end things come up easier than the lower priced items.

I just noticed that in "gloves."

I actually wanted a couple of dozen simple thick cotton gloves of a kind that has been around for centuries and I couldn't find them. These were for a temporary work crew. I had expected to find them for about $1.00 each in quantity. Anyway I went to Walmart and bought $2.00 leather palmed gloves, but I know if these are tossed into a washing machine they will deteriorate.

Later I went back to Amazon and tried some different keyword searches and found more cotton gloves that will probably do.

Being curious I looked under work gloves and under tools and home improvement for cotton gloves. Something like 233 pages of results each I think.

The big problem I saw was when you sorted by price the cheaper gloves are sold in lots of 8-60 (one example was 60 pairs for around 23.00) so often the higher priced items are shown first. (Single pair of gloves at $5.00 appears before case of 60 pairs for $23.00)

I think this is the venders choice as I have seen things advertised at single item price where you had to buy a case but I could be wrong.

I am often confused by Amazon and totally befuddled by EBay. But I have friends who are perceived by many to be about as smart as sticks who glory in them. My biggest use of Amazon is getting things that are hard to find elsewhere.

Helen

[frahse]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

Being curious I looked under work gloves and under tools and home improvement for cotton gloves. Something like 233 pages of results each I think.

The big problem I saw was when you sorted by price the cheaper gloves are sold in lots of 8-60 (one example was 60 pairs for around 23.00) so often the higher priced items are shown first. (Single pair of gloves at $5.00 appears before case of 60 pairs for $23.00)

I think this is the venders choice as I have seen things advertised at single item price where you had to buy a case but I could be wrong.

I am often confused by Amazon and totally befuddled by EBay. But I have friends who are perceived by many to be about as smart as sticks who glory in them. My biggest use of Amazon is getting things that are hard to find elsewhere.

Helen

Like I said, when I went back and changed the keywords some, I found a lot more choices.

Same thing for searching for netbooks. Vary the search a little bit and get a whole new crowd. i.e. When is a Latitude 610 or the like considered a "netbook?"

[ApK]

Originally Posted by elemenoP

I have purchased things from Overstock in the past and I never knew they sell books. So, mission accomplished.

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

How is their reputation among those that bought furniture and other things?

I bought from them several times and the experience has always been good. I've had to talk with CS on occasion and they have indeed been nice people. Nicer than Amazon as the CEO claims? Not sure about that, but they are welcome to keep trying to convince me.

I've known them primarily for household items and also for "overstock" stuff for which they are named...I once got a discontinued model guitar, which sold for over $100 in music stores the year before, for $29 from them.

I didn't know they sold books either...unfortunately, when I searched for the much-talked-about JK Rowling mystery "Cuckoo's Calling," they didn't have it...so I STILL don't know that they sell books....:-)

ApK

[tubemonkey]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

My gadget fund is bottomless, anyway. Of course, I only buy what I need.

Don't we all

[stormcloude]

Originally Posted by Catlady

I've been disappointed in Amazon's prices on a variety of merchandise lately; I'm finding things cheaper elsewhere. And when I've reported lower prices, Amazon hasn't price-matched. Plus sales and coupons often bring down prices at other retailers.

I bought a beauty item recently that wasn't even sealed when it arrived. Granted it was a Amazon Marketplace seller, but still, in what world is a personal item that's opened considered "new"?

[pidgeon92]

Originally Posted by stormcloude

I bought a beauty item recently that wasn't even sealed when it arrived. Granted it was a Amazon Marketplace seller, but still, in what world is a personal item that's opened considered "new"?

Ick. I'd return it, and give them a negative review. They're not going to be a marketplace seller for long if they are giving inaccurate information about the item description.

[jersysman]

Originally Posted by stormcloude

I bought a beauty item recently that wasn't even sealed when it arrived. Granted it was a Amazon Marketplace seller, but still, in what world is a personal item that's opened considered "new"?

I'd have reported that to Amazon CS. They would have had you sent another item and then handled the vendor on their own. You, of course, could always leave a negative review as has been stated.

[holymadness]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Agreeing, of course.
People act like Walmart is the lowest of the low when the reality is there are several layers of even lower-priced vendors.
It's why Walmart changed their motto from "Always the low price".

Their issue isn't Walmart's (or Amazon's) prices; it's their size.
And success.

As I've said before, some people despise success.
Just ask J.K. Rowling, who went from "plucky exemplar" to "lucky hack" merely by being too successful.

What a thoroughly disgusting apologia for unethical business practices. I can't imagine anyone not employed by a PR firm having the temerity to declare that dislike of Walmart boils down to jealousy of their success. That success, incidentally, is based on paying employees so little that as many as 80% of workers in Walmart stores go on food stamps and medicaid to survive. Walmart is the ultimate welfare queen, as its wages force employees to rely on $2.66 billion in government help every year.