Internet buying vs. local

[kenmac]

I try to support the local places myself .But, Someone hit 1 of my tow mirrors on my dodge truck & busted it (not just the glass) I found the mirror assy. on Ebay from a dodge dealer in Cal. for $195.00 with shipping. I go by the local dodge dealer & explain the price I found from another Dodge dealer & that I would like to buy local if possible. Parts guy looks up the mirror assy and tells me the price is just under $400.00 & there's he can do to lower the price.I thanked him & walked out the door...Heck ! the junk yard even wanted $180.00 + tax for a used 1 .

 

[2manyrocks]

There isn't a yanmar dealer close to me. If I want parts, they have to be ordered somewhere and that's typically on line.

I don't always trust the on line product reviews, either, but reading through the product reviews is better than nothing expecially when the local seller doesn't know the product.

I am fortunate to have a very competent local vet who is reasonable on all her prices. That was not the case when I lived in Nashville and got charged a lot by a vet who just wasn't very good at much except at soaking his customers.

 

[PILOON]

A friend needed a computer for his dodge PU.
Not very 'puter able asked me to find one.
Dealer wants $800.
Found them on web for $155. + $35.UPS c/w 1 year warranty!

 

[CowboyRon]

I found I was getting screwed by our local ace hardware. I bought some just one bite rat killer for 10.99. We went to buy feed in Canton and my dad needed some also, it was 3 something for the exact same package minus his local discount that he gets. Maybe we need eBay to keep some of these guys halfway honest. I don't think ace hardwares overhead would be that much more than the local feedstore.

 

[WM75Guy]

This article talks about Kroger and Walgreens pharmacies selling pet meds. Many pet meds are the same as human meds. Antibiotics and steroids are the same drug, just different doses. We used to be able to buy drugs wholesale thru the hospital pharmacy at one hospital where my wife worked, saved a lot on horse meds.

Competition for pet medicines could drive up vet prices | News | News from Fort Worth, D...

 

[CurlyDave]

The way I look at this is that we are moving to internet vendors for almost all low-volume products.

If I need a specialty hardware item I can go to the local store and they will order it for me, or I can go to the internet and order it for myself. Well, if ordering it for myself is much less costly, and probably faster than buying from the local store, I am going to the internet.

This is just a part of the business cycle. Back in my grandparents day, people used to deliver ice for their ice box. Then mechanical refrigerators were invented and took over the market. What happened to all of the iceman jobs? They became obsolete.

Exactly the same thing is going to happen to a lot of retail sales jobs. The smart retail clerks are going to be looking for UPS delivery jobs before all the retail clerk jobs are gone.

Buying local may feel good, but it is only going to prolong the agony of a lot of people with retail jobs.

I don't have a good answer for what to do for the 50 year old retail clerk who loses his job to the internet, but buying locally is only going to keep him going for a short while.

 

[JDgreen227]

I try to support the local places myself .But, Someone hit 1 of my tow mirrors on my dodge truck & busted it (not just the glass) I found the mirror assy. on Ebay from a dodge dealer in Cal. for $195.00 with shipping. I go by the local dodge dealer & explain the price I found from another Dodge dealer & that I would like to buy local if possible. Parts guy looks up the mirror assy and tells me the price is just under $400.00 & there's he can do to lower the price.I thanked him & walked out the door...Heck ! the junk yard even wanted $180.00 + tax for a used 1 .

Another good example of how a local business is cutting their own throat by not offering a competive price. CA dealer is willing to sell the mirror for half the price of local dealer, and by failing to match the lower price, local dealer not only loses the sale but likely other future business you would take there.

 

[MtHam]

Here is an article I came across yesterday on the dirty little secret about the large online retailers and their labor practices:
I Was a Warehouse Wage Slave | Mother Jones

 

[CurlyDave]

Well, I read the whole article and count me as skeptical.

The only parts they left out were being kidnapped at gun point and transported to the warehouse and then the Arbeit Macht Frei sign over the entrance.

The reality is that no one was forced into that job and some people commuted 2 hours each way to work there. If it was that unsatisfying, why is there a constant stream of people who want those jobs?