Warning for Online Shoppers

You need to hear this. Online shopping is super convenient, but it comes at a steep price. Here's what to do.
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[@BeckyM154]

I feel like I'm saving gas by not having to drive all over town looking for something specific I want to buy. In fact, I even can't imagine doing that now.

[@MinimalistHome]

Totally! I just went to a store looking for irrigation emitters and couldn’t find them 🤷🏻‍♀️

[@vanessaandreatta9098]

I am on the opposite side! I live in town and don't drive anywhere. Literally nowhere. I can go to the hospital in 3 minutes with public transportation or 8 minutes on my bike... I have everything in my block. Lucky me. I should order furniture after 15 years... Shall I? Ahahah

[@GrammyAmanda]

My husband & I drove to 2 stores for a replacement garage door opener. It was confusing. We went home, did online research to figure out what we needed, and ordered online anyway.

[@vanessaandreatta9098]

@@GrammyAmanda yes I guess I need less then most ppl... I don't own a car... Not even a garage! But yes if you shop for that specific thing you can get lost

[@annamariekorte7259]

I use boxes for Decluttering. Stuff goes in boxes & boxes go to thrift store with goodies.

[@GoingGreenMom]

Same here!

[@GrammyAmanda]

Same! And i’ll hold onto something until I get a big enough box so it doesn’t break at the donation drop off. I might be too perfectionist in my donation practice. 😝

[@MinimalistHome]

Yay!!😀

[@sjf8305]

i do the same soon as one thing comes in the box turns into a donation box or sell box

[@RadCenter]

There are environmental costs when you shop at a bricks-and-mortar store, also. The retailer has to heat, cool, and light that store and provide acres of parking so that you can shop there in comfort. In contrast, when your items ship from a warehouse, those items can be stacked on shelves that reach several stories high, in a building where lights are only activated by motion detectors, which is far more energy efficient. Sending one delivery truck out to make dozens of stops on one day is also more fuel-efficient than sending dozens of single-passenger cars to stores to shop. In addition, ordering something through a printed catalog requires the same planes and trucks to deliver your order as ordering online. But online orders save trees by not requiring the retailer to print catalogs. (Yes, I know computer servers consume a lot of energy.) The bottom line is that every form of consumption has hidden costs, and therefore we should do our best to limit it.

[@Lili-xq9sn]

Great points

[@GoingGreenMom]

Definitely agree. Just stop shopping.

[@MinimalistHome]

Mindful shopping is definitely part of being minimalist light! 💡

[@lormor460]

I am so guilty of Amazon shopping and wanting things the same day. 😮. However, at Christmas time, I spend less money and can have my Christmas shopping done by November. Sometimes in just a day or 2. I used to go crazy finding just the right gift running from store to store. Sometimes, I just put things in the Amazon wish list and then eventually delete it or wait until it is no longer available.

[@MinimalistHome]

💛👍🏼🌺

[@nataschalorez8885]

I hate shopping in stores. I am an ambulatory wheelchair user. Lots of stores have isles that are just too small. In one perticular store (with stores all over the country), i would drag the clothes from the rack with me when going through. Also, so many employees keep an eye on you and act like you are going to steal something. And for the rest, they harrass you. I hate employees that keep coming over to ask if you need help. They just won't leave customers alone to browse And if you dare to leave without bying something, they look at you like you are trash

[@MinimalistHome]

That’s so sad to hear! Thanks for sharing your experience and I’m sure you’re not alone. 🙏🏼💕💪🏼

[@vanessaandreatta9098]

I bought 2 things on line in 20 years... One of which was the Istant pot. I like to look feel touch and desire my purchase first.. And then buy

[@MinimalistHome]

Oh fun!

[@Shiryone]

Me too. I've needed a new toaster oven for years now. It's almost 20 years old and some of the functions no longer work, but I can't bring myself to ordering one on-line. I want to see it in person. I guess one day we'll make the 2-hour trek to the nearest BB&B or Best Buy.

[@vanessaandreatta9098]

@@Shiryone I don't live in. CANADA and I live in a Metropolitan area, still, they didn't sell the Istant Pot. On my wish list there is now Remarkable, but I can't buy it, because they only sell it on line and I don't trust myself 😝

[@suemiller3405]

I agree! But now I live where stores are not very close. So I buy more online -- but I also buy less because I can't touch it or see it in person!

[@maryannecage492]

I thought BB&B as well as Best Buy went out of business. Am I wrong?

[@Lili-xq9sn]

I use a "virtual credit card " when shopping online (capital one offers it). Also, I bought a few things "hocked" by KZbinrs.... things were low-quality/high price, etc. They usually get those things free if they're selling it to you. I don't click on those things anymore.

[@breeze5378]

What’s a virtual credit card?

[@Lili-xq9sn]

@@breeze5378 alternative credit card numbers instead of your read credit card numbers to shop online.

[@MinimalistHome]

Interesting 🙏🏼

[@suemiller3405]

When I lived in a metro area, I avoided Amazon as much as I could. Now that I live in a more rural area, if I want to shop in person I usually drive 40, 50, or more miles to shop. Now I order online a lot more. I think I'm saving gas (not just my own) by ordering online. I used to be able to take boxes to a shipping center so they would be reused; now I can't find anyone who will take boxes, but shipping places do take bubble wrap, packing pillows, etc (but not packing peanuts). Also, I'm trying to declutter so I'm trying to buy a lot less -- if I find something I want but am not going to use immediately, I leave it in my cart f-o-r-e-v-e-r. Then I go through my "save for later" items periodically and often end up deleting them. I'm older and live alone so sometimes I order things online because I can't manage to carry the item myself! I wonder what others think.

[@MinimalistHome]

Sounds like you have a system that works for you! 💕✅💪🏼

[@tammyc1812]

I do hate paying for shipping, I recently received a catalog in the mail and I saw a few things I needed, so I looked at shipping costs, turns out, the more you order, the higher the shipping cost was. That catalog went straight in the trash.

[@MinimalistHome]

Good for you! 💪🏼

[@angelicaromero1674]

Ty for sharing. I would love to go shopping in stores and not online. However I have twins that are special needs and we can only shop certain stores and maybe one store biweekly to avoid meltdowns. So curbside pickup and online unfortunately is a must for us. I agree with you 💯

[@MinimalistHome]

Oh goodness, yes. You are definitely in survival mode. It’s also harder to buy from stores now

[@GoingGreenMom]

Online shopping has been great for health here too. I get migraines from something in most stores, lights maybe? But also dizzy spells from laundry chemicals and perfumes people wear. I have less issues now than I used to, and I think some of that is being smart about exposure. When my kids were little I would grocery shop once a month, and remember there being days we were almost out of food so I needed to shop, but I'd get to the store and have no energy and be in do much pain just from getting that far that I would sit there and cry, then drive back home because I just couldn't go in. Curbside and delivery would have helped sooo much back then.

[@anitawilkie7275]

Sometimes go to local store... They don't have the right size or it's not in stock so they have to order it in. Which then means an extra visit to the shop or them ordering it online to get delivered to you.

[@MinimalistHome]

Sometimes it’s the best thing ever! 💛

[@478cookies]

All of the stuff being shipped en masse to stores for a lot of it to be shipped back unsold and dumped into landfills vs. only shipping to the user that actually wants it and not wasting resources of brick and mortar. I don't know the numbers, but I wonder which is actually more wasteful.

[@MinimalistHome]

Hmm… good point! Individually packaged things must be more wasteful in some cases anyway, but so is stuff sitting around and not getting sold in many case… buying less is really the key!

[@sunshining_inthe_hebrides4030]

We have always traditionally here bought luxuries like clothing etc from a catalogue, now on line .. and parts for machinery etc .. if I go to the mainland ..it’s a whole day for 2.5 hours and and unless I take a car ( which is near on impossible in the summer due to the space being used by tourists ) I have to arrange what ever to be bought into the main city so I don’t miss my bus back to the ferry .. so I leave home at 5am and should be back by 9pm ..it’s a long day and very expensive for some small thing ..so I order on line

[@MinimalistHome]

Oh wow! Yes. So much of our choices depend on our specific circumstances. 🌺💛👍🏼

[@yenquest]

There's a chance that you may walk out of the physical store empty handed (either because they don't carry it, or couldn't get stock), so you either have to come back another day, or try checking out another store and pay whatever price. Online shopping is nice since you can easily price compare, get customer feedback on product's quality and not have to worry about traveling/lifting-as-much, but I will not use it for grocery shopping though. I like to pick out produce's ripeness, buy by the pound, look out for any clearance items, etc. I like to repurpose cardboard boxes before recycling them (similar reusing plastic bags or glass jars). Compost it for the backyard garden (or grow potatoes in them, lol), gift multiple things to the donation center, hold "time will tell" items when decluttering, etc.

[@MinimalistHome]

🌺💛🙏🏼

[@susanmcdaniel9431]

I miss the brick & mortar stores or the ones that are open don’t stay stocked😔. I still have a cup from Amazon book shop! It is veerrryy convenient to shop online… all in moderation 👍🏻 So glad you institute the “cooling off period”!

[@MinimalistHome]

💛👍🏼✅

[@teresarose7524]

brick and mortar stores are closing all the time. They are leaving people no choice in some cases to have to order on line. There are very few places left to go shopping for what we need.

[@MinimalistHome]

Yes, depending where you live, there is definitely a bit of a vicious cycle around this! 🤞🏼💛

[@Michele-4513]

Everything you said is spot on!

[@MinimalistHome]

Oh thanks! 🙏🏼

[@GoingGreenMom]

I have a lot of the regular things on subscribe and save so the things we consume like shampoo/conditioner/TP ships once a month. And I cut prime, and limit myself to 1 order per month. Stuff sits in the cart and accumulates. I also set a budget to aim for so I have to weed out the wants and only get the needs and maybe 1 want. I have recently started aiming to buy American made if at all possible. I know that probably doesnt make sense since you are Canadian, but paying attention and trying to find stuff that is American made has me focusing more and weeds out a ton of stuff. Im still willing to buy outside the US, but I'll prioritize Canada or the stuff manufactured where they are the experts on something, like linen from France or Weck jars from Germany. I dont shop in store because the lighting and exposure to laundry chemicals/perfumes tend to have me down for a couple days with migraines if I go in the store.

[@dianasimplifies]

We cut prime too. I had asked my hubby for 2 years to cut the cord and he finally let me😂😂

[@MinimalistHome]

So many decisions! Good for you for being intentional about it for your needs. We all do the best we can from moment to moment. As long as you’re making choices and not just going on along with whatever, it’s okay. 🙏🏼

[@LauraGoynes]

Thank you for reminding me about the importance of supporting local businesses!! I’ve gotten so caught up in the convenience of staying home when buildingsome local relationships would be fun!! I don’t buy a whole lot of clothing or decor but I do buy supplements often that could be bought locally 😊❤ Love you girl for keeping us company and helping our lives be better!!!! Hugs 🤗 hugs!!! 🤗

[@dianasimplifies]

Good luck finding your supplements locally. I have to buy most of mine online now. WM doesn't even stock the ones in the stores I used to pick up. I am now having to have almost all supplements shipped from WM or Amazon

[@MinimalistHome]

✅💪🏼💕

[@deidrecampbell9454]

All our boxes and packaging are kept for selling on eBay. It means we never have to spend money on packaging.

[@MinimalistHome]

If you can manage it and it’s not taking over and making it hard to function, then that’s great! ✅

[@deidrecampbell9454]

@@MinimalistHome for sure! I think having a system makes it manageable. Were experienced resellers so have overcome the overwhelm those who haven’t done it before experience.

[@sonyad7723]

Omg! The convenience factor, YES!!! AND the uh, another box, big deal....😂😂 Sooooo much so, to the extent that I frequently find myself thinking 'i wonder what this is?' Mind you, it's NOT that I do soooo much impulse buying that I can't remember what I'm buying, just the opposite! I'm disabled so I rely on the convenience of 'subscribe and save', and also just 'order once' options for a TON of my daily routine supplies! Febreze air freshener refills just came in 2 days ago (on the auto subscribe) but the box on my porch when I got home 'i wonder what this is'? Question in my head WASN'T a 'fun ooohhhh excited ' question by any means, like a present lol. It was I just curious what I bought and forgot about bc it was so routine cleaning supplies lol😅

[@MinimalistHome]

👍🏼💕😁

[@yzolakitchi]

I don't use Amazon anymore - haven't for more than 10 years, due to their questionable employee relation ethics! But I do shop online. I do a LOT of online research before buying items, so the algorithm gets plenty of feedback from me. I generally have a very specific idea of what I want, and will then spend 3-9 months reading reviews/checking for different suppliers/using image search to find a good price etc - the downside of that for me, is that after you buy the item (recent electric toothbrush purchase!) I then get a month of toothbrush adverts ... of course if I was willing to part with every ounce of my data, I could probably tell the powers that be, hey, didn't you see I bought one already - show me something new! I love product design so love looking at items online and tend to do more impulse shopping in real stores, although I can enjoy window shopping too. I would say 50% of my online shopping is buying second-hand on eBay, 20% buying new on eBay and the other 10% split across numerous suppliers for one-off purchases - eg vacuum cleaner, wardrobe and another 10% on groceries/supplements/cosmetics. Pricing, generally can't be beaten - online is always cheaper in my experience, and being low income, that's a huge factor. But it's also one of the key reasons so many high street stores, here in the UK have/are closing branches. We lost some major retailers during and after the pandemic, sadly.

[@Shiryone]

TY for posting this. We have the same stance. They have also put many, many retailers out of business. At this rate, one day we will only have them to shop with. And when we do feel like doing some shopping in person, there will be no place to go. And just an FYI, they have purchased many companies like ZAPPOS. So now, before I purchase, I do a search to see if Amazon owns the company. This happened to me last year. Made me mad.

[@dianasimplifies]

Which electric toothbrush did you end up loving???

[@yzolakitchi]

@@dianasimplifies After a year of drooling over the Suri, I finally got one in their recent sale. Absolutely love it, and looks so much nicer in my streamlined bathroom than the chunky black Sonicare I'd been using for the last three years. I managed to get £15 for the Sonicare on eBay which helped to offset the cost of the new one a little :-)

[@yzolakitchi]

@@Shiryone Yes, I heard and saw far too many horror stories about their approach to their employees in warehouses, drivers etc. Not good at all, I just couldn't face it ethically. I'm sure a lot of the big companies aren't that great, but Amazon seems so blinking ubiquitous. I tried to buy some duck food to take to a park from a local independent seller and they said, oh we only sell on Amazon. When I explained politely that I didn't use Amazon due to their business practices, they said, hey Amazon do a lot to support small businesses online.... Wasn't sure how to reply to them after that! 🙂 I try and buy from private sellers where possible on eBay but sometimes, items still come via Amazon which really annoys me, blasted drop shipping!

[@yzolakitchi]

@@dianasimplifies did reply, but not showing up for some reason, so it may appear twice! I got the SURI, which I absolutely love, and it's great that it is repairable, if need be.🥰

[@tammyc1812]

I mainly order stuff that I can't find in the store

[@dianasimplifies]

Which these days is A LOT! I went into a vitamin store looking for something I had bought online and of course they didn't carry what I wanted or anything even remotely like it!!

[@MinimalistHome]

😯

[@ceekaycollins6861]

I purposely sign in as a guest and use a different browser when I’m going to look at something that I don’t want to be inundated with ads for because screwed up my algorithm by following a link on the accounts I use daily.

[@MinimalistHome]

👍🏼💪🏼💛

[@purpledonkeylover9988]

Awesome video!!

[@MinimalistHome]

Thanks!😊

[@andeeanko7079]

Thankfully, I don't shop online. The last thing I bought online was a rare book, pre-covid. I live in the UK, and Amazon online shopping is contributing to a lot of high streets (Anerican equivalent is 'market street') dying.

[@MinimalistHome]

😪🤞🏼🌺

[@GrammyAmanda]

I’m glad you brought up fuel for shipping. I buy used items off eBay. But the shipping fuel probably negates some of the benefits of buying second hand. Though it’s still probably environmentally better than ordering new items, which I am also guilty of. 🙃 📦

[@MinimalistHome]

🌺✅💛

[@charminlindholm7779]

I have my “Amazon day” for Wednesday. They wait to fulfill it on Tuesday, so if I add anything, it comes all together. It also allows for a delay and time to cancel.

[@MinimalistHome]

Interesting! 👍🏼

[@Shiryone]

I can't imagine doing my grocery shopping for things like produce and bread on-line for delivery or pick-up. Those I definitely want to feel and touch myself. Like avocadoes...if I buy three, I like to pick them with varying degrees of ripeness. While I do shop about 75% on-line due to the lack of stores in our rural area, I think some of the downsides (besides Amazon putting many companies out of business) is the lack of human contact and job loss for many people. As our society continues toward an A.I. existence, human contact and even relationships made through shopping in person are being lost. And as for money, everything is just a line item on a computer now. We get our money line-itemed to us, then we go to the stores and our money gets added to their line-item, which in turns goes as a line-item to the supplier, and etc. Such a huge disconnect. My kids are in their 30's now. I don't know how I would teach younger kids the value and responsibility of money now-a-days. And as for algorithms, I now not only get adds sent to me, but get emails. It's very annoying. I'll stop here...though I could go on and on! 🙂 Great topic, TY.

[@debrajones7349]

I’ve never been disappointed in Azure Standard produce. Always comes just the way I would pick if I was actually shopping myself.

[@lisaandrews1658]

@@debrajones7349 Yes. Azure is fabulous.

[@Shiryone]

@@debrajones7349 I'm not familiar with them.

[@MinimalistHome]

Interesting points for sure! I like to get lots of my fresh fruits and vegetables at Costco. 🥑

[@pattyburkhart3270]

I was looking at a picture on facebook marketplace, only because I thought, what in the world is that? Then it kept coming up that it was still available.

[@MinimalistHome]

Ouf. (And what was it?) 🤞🏼

[@joycampina4133]

I hate they use a huge box for a smaller box

[@MinimalistHome]

Yes! Ugh! 😩

[@crybebebunny]

My daughter and I go crazy the day we get "TEMU". Something like Christmas affects. 5:10 Yes, one of my children when they were very young, once asked we just did get more money from the ATM. My youngest sibling had the same concept about money. That it just came from the ATM. As if we just wanted to suffer in the low income community as we are. Please, we are very Grateful to go to the grocery store and get as many of any food we want, meaning we don't live under Cuba law, but we have to limit.

[@suemiller3405]

I'm not sure shopping via TEMU is a good idea. Things are cheap -- but items aren't regulated. Designs may be used illegally, workers may not be paid a living wage, and some items turn out to be toxic, including children's toys. Be very careful!

[@crybebebunny]

@suemiller3405 I have personally purchased the exact items both at the Amazon and Temu. Same box and bag packaging. I don't think that the person making the products will get more pay when sold by one or the other. Maybe be the last seller, but the people below that chain.

[@suemiller3405]

@@crybebebunny Glad that some items are fine -- just check carefully. You might want to Google TEMU and see if you can find some of reports on it.

[@suemiller3405]

@@crybebebunny So glad some of the products are legit! You might want to Google TEMU and see if you can find some of the reports on them; I don't think everything is on the up-and-up. There are TONS of sellers and you are purchasing direct which is what makes it so inexpensive -- but there is no regulation for ethics and safety.

[@MinimalistHome]

🌺🤞🏼💪🏼🌺

[@janetstraw191]

Terrific video!! 👏👏👍🙋‍♀️🇺🇸🥰‼️

[@MinimalistHome]

Thanks! ☀️💛🌺

[@SDSueK]

All this!

[@MinimalistHome]

✅💕🙏🏼

[@sjf8305]

i do shop online a bit however if i order anything it has to be not available in store i have some subscriptions like earth breeze (deliverly every 6 months) or sparkling ice +caffine (once a month) since the stores do not have these things. right now i am looking for a good cat tree that is big enough for my furr babies. i try to stay away from online shopping when i can

[@MinimalistHome]

👍🏼💛🙏🏼

[@reneechristensenpillow8373]

Retail therapy....lol thankfully if I don't like it I return quickly.

[@MinimalistHome]

👍🏼✅💕

[@mamakaka73]

I once wrote a bad review for an article and the company tried to bribe me into changing my review. No thanks... I don't want more of your stuff.

[@MinimalistHome]

Ugh! 😩

[@ros8986]

I order online because I can get the best selection and best price. My question is "does my life REALLY need this item?"

[@MinimalistHome]

✅👍🏼🌺

[@user-ep6ux6tl8e]

Trucks are who deliver to the stores also

[@MinimalistHome]

👍🏼💛🙏🏼

[@jennyjenkins877]

I've never ordered from Amazon, not that there's anything wrong with that.

[@MinimalistHome]

✅👍🏼🌺

[@Blankenshipable]

I was wondering how your KZbin issue resolved. I saw your video from 6 months ago

[@MinimalistHome]

It’s getting better. & I also started a new channel (renamed my ADHD one Minimalist Home Living). 💪🏼

[@fightingforsimplicity]

OMG the algorithm is always stalking me. I try hard not to click

[@MinimalistHome]

🤞🏼💪🏼🙏🏼

[@SheilaEnglish2]

I thought the wooden picture behind you was of a dinosaur. I was wondering why you would have a dinosaur picture on your wall …. 🤔 Well she does have sons maybe one of them created it 🤷‍♀️

[@MinimalistHome]

haha!