I don't like Amazon anymore
September 07, 2005
The site is great, the navigation intuitive, as a company they must be applauded for their sustained growth and share price rises - BUT - their Irish distribution is appalling. And they don't care. Obviously we're just that small part of the UK that doesn't really matter, but it's the 2nd time now that I've had parcels not delivered.
Quite a while ago, a friend sent me a birthday present through Amazon and it never got to me. She thought I was being really rude for not saying thank you. I thought she'd forgotten my birthday. Once we discovered what was going on, I got on to the Irish distribution arm of Amazon, which is SDS, and they said that since a month had past, it was 'too late' for me to get the gift. Anyway, emails and phone calls aplenty and I gave up on it. No present for me. And my friend forked out for nothing.
The other week I ordered a couple of business books from Amazon and received the many emails informing me of my order - it's getting ready to be delivered - Kumar from packing and distribution has just put the sellotape on it - it's being stamped by Shen in our Leeds office. . . etc etc.
I received one of the books. When I went on to the site to track my order it simply said that it had been sent and I had to follow up with my postal company. Now much as I find An Post regular mail slow, they at least always leave one of those cards to tell you they'd been there. I haven't got one of them, so now I'm faced with telephoning SDS whose customer service is number 8 on their list of extensions to dial, and trying to locate my package.
Why should I? I've paid for my books, it is their responsibility to get them to me. So it is for this very reason that I have decided I don't like Amazon and in future I'm going to buy all my books in Hoggis Figgis which is a great shop.