The Shopping Bag guffaws when she thinks back to Decembers before e-commerce. Pre-clicks-and-bricks? Prehistoric! There's nothing like working down a holiday shopping list with a (big) mug of eggnog in one hand and a computer mouse in another, avoiding crowds, underpaid Santa's helpers and mall employees who act like they're doing you a favor by taking your money.
Shopping around on the Internet, however, can be as difficult as finding a private dressing room at
Filene's Basement, particularly for newcomers to e-commerce. The Shopping Bag recently tagged along with one to see what she made of some of the more popular e-commerce sites. None too coincidentally, the newbie is the Shopping Bag's mother, a.k.a. the
Old Bag, who possesses email proficiency and an enthusiasm for
Napster but whose retail experience lies mainly in the bricks-and-mortar world.
Mom starts her online shopping odyssey on familiar turf:
Amazon.com (AMZN Quote - Cramer on AMZN - Stock Picks), where she's purchased books and music before. "Ooh,
Fleetwood Mac!" she says, as the home page gives her a CD recommendation. "I like how they know what I want." At the mall, Mom loves going to
Talbots (TLB Quote - Cramer on TLB - Stock Picks), where her friend the sales clerk greets her by name; she likes the same from Amazon.
Epiphany
But Mom's experience also highlights one of Amazon's problems: Her familiarity with its main book, music and video business hasn't spilled over to newer categories. Though she's currently in the market for a digital camera, she doesn't even think to look for it on Amazon. After some prompting from the Shopping Bag, she notices the tabs that lead to other products, and specs out the camera area. "They've got all this stuff here? I had no idea!" she says, taking a spin through Amazon's lawn and patio and new car sections. "When did Amazon do all this?"
Next, to
eToys(ETYS Quote - Cramer on ETYS - Stock Picks), to look for a gift for a friend's 14-month-old son. The layout is promising, but Mom wishes the product listings, like Amazon's, came with a list price with which to compare eToys' price.
More fundamentally, she doesn't think it's easy to figure out what toys look like online. "When I'm dealing with toys, I want to see the colors, make sure there are no sharp edges and make sure it's well made." Unless it were a known brand like a
Lego set or a
Barbie, she'd go to the toy store first, then shop around on the Web for the best price. This, by the way, makes her every retailer's worst nightmare.
Raised in a Barn?
Mom has already drooled plenty over the new remodeled
Pottery Barn (a unit of
Williams-Sonoma (WSM Quote - Cramer on WSM - Stock Picks)) at the local mall. PotteryBarn.com, if possible, makes her spill even more saliva. "This makes me want to spend money!" she says. (Note to PotteryBarn.com merchandisers: Time to ask for a good annual bonus.)
She clicks on the site's holiday music and starts moving through Pottery Barn's home tour, which shows -- room by room, and from many different angles -- an entire house decorated with PB merchandise. "It's a great Web site for design ideas," she says, also admiring the decorating and repair tips. She balks only at the $100 shipping cost for a sleigh bed. Though a catalog would also charge shipping, the extra money makes it more attractive to hit the mall. All in all, though, she proclaims Pottery Barn's site the best she's surfed, particularly since she's already familiar with the quality of the merchandise.
AnnTaylor.com, the brand spanking new online offshoot of
AnnTaylor(ANN Quote - Cramer on ANN - Stock Picks), doesn't win as much praise. "All this clothing looks the same to me," Mom says, squinting at the smallish outfits. Mom also notices that AnnTaylor's online selection is edited from what's in the store; items that are in the front window at the mall may not even be for sale on the site, like a red dress she was eyeing earlier. She does like the Wardrobe Advisor feature, which helps pick out outfits appropriate for a particular occasion or personal style. "The nice thing is that they give you accessory suggestions," she says. Searching for gift ideas for the Shopping Bag, however, produces no great inspiration.
Bull's-Eye
Shopping at
Target.com is particularly attractive because there is no
Target (TGT Quote - Cramer on TGT - Stock Picks) within 30 miles of Mom. She again searches for a digital camera, but concludes it's too confusing to shop online -- better to hit the store first and see what she wants, then compare prices on the Web.
She does, however, want some clip-on reindeer antlers to wear to work (don't ask). Alas, a search of "headgear" draws a blank. "Reindeer" brings only some cute ornaments. Mom also wants some new vases. Oddly enough, searching for "vases" brings up only two items, though going into the vase category produces many more. Besides those, she sees a lot of stuff she likes -- the aforementioned vases, Target's signature
Michael Graves teakettle, a $69.99 cashmere sweater -- and decides she'd definitely come back.
Mom's not going to avoid the mall this holiday season after all. If she wants clothes, she'll at least check them out in stores first, and will probably end up buying them there, too, unless she's extremely familiar with the brand and merchandise. More standardized items like books, music and electronics are a different story; she'll buy those wherever she can get them cheapest -- on- or off-line. Mom probably isn't so different from other consumers in that she likes convenience, but she likes a good bargain even more.
She is, however, still willing to pay up for a good pair of reindeer antlers.
Katherine Hobson
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