I Stopped Buying Things From Amazon — Here’s What I Learned
Ah, Amazon. The one-stop shop for basically everything has made adding items to your cart as easy as one quick click. But what happens when, for a variety of reasons, you want to break up with the online behemoth?
GOBankingRates talked with two former frequent Amazon shoppers about their experiences quitting the retail giant. Despite Amazon’s popularity for convenience and fast shipping, these shoppers ultimately decided to stop buying from the company altogether.
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Making such a drastic change wasn’t easy at first. But in the long run, both shoppers found themselves saving money, supporting small businesses and being more mindful of their spending habits after kicking the Amazon habit.
Here’s why they stopped buying things from Amazon and what they learned along the way.
Giving Up the Convenience of Amazon Isn’t Easy
For many loyal Amazon customers, the sheer convenience is hard to pass up. Eloisa Hife described how difficult it was to initially give up being able to order anything she wanted with just a few clicks. Like Hife, most people get very accustomed to relying on Amazon for quick, cheap access to practically any item.
Jasmine Charbonier also emphasized the challenge of going cold turkey from Amazon Prime’s quick shipping in particular. She had to retrain herself to plan shopping trips instead of instantly clicking to buy items online.
According to Charbonier, it takes dedication to “rethink where I could buy basics like household items and books” without Amazon’s instant gratification. But she has found that the adjustment ultimately taught her that sometimes things you want in life are worth working a little harder for.
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Kicking the Habit Helps Curb Impulse Spending
For Charbonier, one of the biggest perks of dropping Amazon was it forced her to curb impulse spending habits. She shared that the convenience of Amazon’s 1-click buy option made it far too easy to purchase things without considering if she really needed them.
“My Amazon addiction was out of control — I was browsing and buying something almost daily without thinking,” she said.
Removing that friction made her evaluate each potential purchase more critically before buying. Asking herself whether she would actually use an item enough to justify the cost helped avoid many unneeded impulse buys.
Hife also highlighted that she is now “more mindful of my needs and wants” when it comes to spending money. Kicking the Amazon habit can help many people save by changing their impulse shopping behaviors for the better.
Quitting Amazon Redirects Money to Small Businesses
Rather than feeding more dollars into Amazon’s nearly trillion dollar valuation, both shoppers realized they could redirect their spending to support small and local businesses instead.
Hife shared that leaving Amazon made her “more aware of the company’s negative impact on small businesses.” She now actively chooses to buy from local shops and ethical brands when possible.
Charbonier also emphasized that discovering alternatives to Amazon led her to explore small businesses in her own Tampa neighborhood. She felt good being able to invest in those stores directly.
“Shopping locally created friendships and a sense of community,” she said.
Pride in Ownership Is Renewed
For Charbonier, packages always arrived from Amazon so conveniently that she didn’t cherish the items she bought very much. But with Amazon out of the picture, she explained, she valued the items that she brought into her home more.
Hife also highlighted that she became more quality and budget-conscious after quitting Amazon. With less stuff entering her home, she gained a renewed sense of ownership over her possessions. Simply put, she’s happier with less, and she has quitting Amazon to thank for that.
More Conscious Spending Across All Areas of Life
Above all, Charbonier said the biggest lesson after quitting Amazon was learning “to spend more intentionally” overall. Both she and Hife believe the convenient checkout process had enabled mindless spending without properly evaluating each purchase.
Gone are the day of impulse purchases — now both women are more thoughtful about what they surround themselves with. Removing that easy outlet required Charbonier to value every dollar spent elsewhere more. She also gained greater satisfaction from the thoughtful purchases she did decide to make.
Both Charbonier and Hife show how breaking up with Amazon can lead people to be more conscious spenders in all aspects of life. Does that mean that everyone should break up with Amazon?
Well, for some people it’s more difficult (or downright impossible!), but these examples show that even if you don’t quit cold turkey, you can make changes to be more conscientious of how you purchase from the delivery company.
“Making the switch really did take some time and effort on my end, but I’m really glad to have done so,” said Hife.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: I Stopped Buying Things From Amazon — Here’s What I Learned
