Which are the items you prefer to buy online and why?

“Toys”, because of the neutral packaging.

The only things I don’t like to buy online are fresh food, shoes, and pants. I like to pick out my own food and need to try on shoes and pants first.

Everything else is fair game. Amazon can deliver it all.

My immediate thought was exactly like @cookieman‘s – food, shoes, and pants. Mentally surveying my wardrobe, the only clothes I buy online are socks, underwear, and t-shirts.

And I don’t like big package deliveries. I’m not buying charcoal online or TVs. I think that’s from living in an apartment where the package may sit on the porch unattended and inviting. When I make an exception I’ll ship to a friend’s house.

I only go online for things I definitely can’t find in the local stores. I don’t like to waste shipping money and waiting time for something I can find right in the street. So my purchase history is really weird. Things no one can image :P

^like what?

Mostly books, on Amazon, because they’re cheaper, and it’s easy to look them up, and read reader reviews, and get recommendations for similar books. I get free shipping with Amazon Prime.

Everything except for food and clothes. Clothes because some things don’t look as good on me in person as I might expect and I don’t want to buy something I haven’t tried on first and food because I just find it sketchy. Like something might have been done to it.

DVDs and books.

I buy items for my pond online: chemicals, lights, filters, equipment. There is no “pond store” nearby so online is perfect for me.
I also purchase pellet guns and related equipment online.

I was very slow to adopt online shopping, partly because I preferred to support local businesses (and I don’t mean Target and Wal-Mart) and partly because, all the way back to the 1970s, I’ve been worried about how much information we give away to entities that won’t protect our privacy. Every time I make a credit card purchase, I think about that. And then I go ahead and take the risk, because convenience usually wins.

But as local sources started to disappear, I really had no choice if I wanted to continue to obtain such things as a particular brand of tea, everyday kitchen implements, small personal items, certain types of clothing, and so on. I also look for used books in good condition when I want something that my city library doesn’t have (and that I can’t get on Kindle for less than $6.00).

Now it looks like I’m going to have to shop for art supplies online too. A major local art store is going out of business, and that means my art class is also losing its location. How can you see the real color of something or check the texture of the paper on a computer screen?

It bothers me to patronize the very outfits that have killed local businesses, but until there’s a real backlash (as I truly believe there will be with newspapers) I overcome my resistance and try not to think about enriching Jeff Bezos. He’s just some rich guy out there, and meanwhile I’ve replaced my broken cheese slicer.

What do I think may reverse the trend, though? You know, I think it’s going to be package theft. The box or envelope makes it all the way to my front doorstep, and if it stays there more than a few minutes, it could be scooped up by a porch pirate. Internet security can’t protect the last two feet of the delivery process. If I’m going to go out and get it somewhere, I’d just as soon go to an actual store as visit a parcel delivery service location—an idiotic compromise that can’t be more than an interim solution.

@Jeruba – Yeah that sounds weird to me too.. Picking up your parcel from delivery location. But it can be a solution to the problem you just mentioned above..Parcel theft from your porch. It will be safe ( hopefully..!) with the facility till you’re able to pick it up and it can be convenient as well if the delivery location is on your daily route to work / gym may be.

I prefer to buy almost everything online except groceries, footwear and clothes. I used to buy hardware on line but the local shop has closed and I now buy most books online because of the great choice and because half the books I buy are Kindle versions.

I regret the loss of local shops and the “to let” signs that are going up in the High Street but it is so convenient to sit at my computer desk to research and order exactly what I want then have it delivered to my door the next day.

@imrainmaker like books about obscure subjects, rare CD, things like that.

^ok.

Christmas presents. I HATE battling other shoppers at Christmas time.