I bought some mouthwash
I do hope the title of the article hasn't got you too excited... Joking aside, the purchase of 2 bottles of mouthwash last week highlighted to me the state of retail in the UK today and I am guessing that this is replicated in most other Western countries.
I needed mouthwash and saw some in a local retailer for £5.50. That is expensive, but when I looked at the other options they were all close to £5 at a minimum.
It is not an item I would consider purchasing from Amazon, but I decided to check anyway and for £4.60 I could have 2 bottles of the same mouthwash delivered for free by 1pm the next day. I do have Amazon Prime, but it is crazy that this can cost in if the prices offered by retailers are considered to be anywhere near realistic.
The cost to the environment of the driver delivering the parcel, the picking of the item and the packaging at this price is daft, but it is real and I'm sad to say that Amazon is becoming more and more a part of my life.
I cannot count the number of times my wife and I have gone to town to buy something and cannot find it, and the ordered from Amazon while in town. With so many shops already closed it can be hard to find required items and this only feeds further into the ever growing dominance of online retailers.
It feels like the bricks and mortar shopping experience is not long for this world and we may soon (within 10 years) only be shopping at out of town shopping centres and through our keyboards.