Whether you need fresh-cut tulips, a punching bag or GMO-free organic chicken feed, Amazon can have it on your doorstep within 48 hours. On top of free two-day shipping, a Prime membership provides streaming music, movies and TV, gaming, e-books and other perks.
Amazon’s supporters point to the company’s massive economic and lifestyle contributions. The company provides an astonishing 1.46 million full- and part-time jobs and lets you furnish your entire house without ever leaving it.
But its detractors have spent more than a decade attempting to boycott the company over what they call unethical corporate practices, social and economic injustices and grossly unjust tax-dodging.
No matter your camp, there’s no denying that Jeff Bezos makes it easy for average earners to resent him — or at least not want to make him any richer. A perennial contender for the title of richest person in the world, the Amazon founder has a personal fortune of $165 billion. Just his yacht is worth $500 million and is the world’s largest sailing vessel. In fact, he’s so rich that even his yacht has a yacht — a $75 million support vessel for Bezos to land his helicopter tags along on every journey.
There have been several long-running attempts to boycott Amazon, which is a heavy lift, considering that 167 million Americans have Prime memberships, which are so popular that they have a 99% two-year renewal rate.
Here are just a few:
The Guardian reported on a boycott in response to what its leader called unfair treatment of workers, supply-chain-wide labor exploitation, grueling warehouse conditions, dystopian productivity technology and anti-unionization efforts.
An Ethical Consumer boycott cited what it calls “outrageous tax avoidance.”
Social Justice Books calls Amazon’s business practices “scorched-earth capitalism” that harms local bookstores, squeezes authors and publishers and drains local economies.
There are many other boycotts based on related grievances, but there are also plenty of garden variety customers fleeing Amazon even though they’re not activists and don’t have a social point to make.
One Long-Time Prime Member Has His Own Reasons for Leaving
Eric Sornoso is the CEO of Mealfan, a site that helps people interested in healthy eating choose between the many different meal delivery services competing for their business.
It offers in-depth reviews of services like Blue Apron, Green Chef, HelloFresh and Sun Basket. Mealfan also pairs people with services based on their lifestyle, family size and choice of diet, provides recipes and premade food recommendations and maintains a health and wellness blog.
Like millions of Americans, Sornoso had gotten used to eagerly awaiting the arrival of packages with the familiar Smile logo on his doorstep. Then, one day, his love affair with the world’s largest online retailer was over.
“I stopped shopping on Amazon due to a combination of reasons, including the cost of Prime membership, concerns about the reliability of reviews and a desire to support local businesses,” he said. “The decision to move away from Amazon was not abrupt but a culmination of various factors.”
Membership Has Gotten Expensive
Amazon has raised its prices by $20 every four years since 2014, from $79 to $99 to $119 and finally to $139 in 2022. If you pay by the month, the price is now $14.99, or $180 a year. For many of those who don’t take advantage of streaming and the other extras — they’re in it mostly for free shipping — the cost of Prime now outweighs the benefits.
Sornoso is among them.
“Amazon’s Prime membership cost was one of the critical factors,” he said. “While it offers numerous benefits, the annual fee has become a significant expense, especially considering that I needed to utilize all of the Prime services fully.”
Reviews Have Become Increasingly Unreliable
Shoppers rely on reviews to gauge the quality of purchases they’re considering. Like so many others, Sornoso has grown to take them with a grain of salt.
“I became increasingly skeptical of the reliability of product reviews on Amazon,” he said. “There were instances where reviews might be manipulated, making it challenging to trust them as a reliable source of information for my purchases.”
It Feels Good To Support Local Businesses
While Sornoso isn’t participating in an organized boycott, he doesn’t want to watch his neighborhood downtown die while he shops from home, either.
“As a conscious consumer, I wanted to support local businesses in my community,” he said. “This shift was not only a way to contribute to the local economy but also to discover unique and locally crafted products.”
It Turns Out Amazon Isn’t the Only Game in Town
For many, it’s hard to imagine life without free two-day delivery, algorithm-based shopping suggestions and everything under the sun being just one click away from your front porch.
But Sornoso has relearned the lost art of buying things elsewhere.
“Since discontinuing my Amazon shopping, my dollars have found new homes,” he said. “I’ve redirected a significant portion of my online shopping to local businesses, including both brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce websites. This allows me to discover handcrafted and unique products, supporting the growth of my community.”
For specific items or brands not readily available in local stores, he’s been exploring niche online retailers instead of reverting to Amazon.
“These platforms often focus on particular categories or products, ensuring quality and variety,” said Sornoso. “As environmental concerns became more critical to me, I’ve been exploring eco-friendly marketplaces that prioritize sustainable and ethically sourced products.”
