Comments on: Convenient dry goods delivery from Alice.com

By: BJN in TN

BJN in TN — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:17:57 +0000

I am retired, diisabled, and living alone. Going to the store for anything is a chore for me. To be able to get the things I need by shopping online is like being in heaven. I can’t wait to use this site. As for meats, vegetables, etc., I order online from Schwan’s. Cost is a little more than grocery store. But delivery is free.

By: Don’t Buy It Reader Question | frugility.com

Don’t Buy It Reader Question | frugility.com — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:10:26 +0000

[...] Unclutterer suggested that maybe I would like Alice.com, which is a new dry goods retailer. It sounded good — free shipping of [...]

By: The Nerd

The Nerd — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:22:38 +0000

I am a single mother with a son in his “terrible twos”. I am very happy to have found this website for the simple reason that I have one less opportunity for him to throw a fit in public. As for those who say there are no coupons, I’m not sure if this is a more recent addition to the website, but there are “coupon” offers available in the form of limited-quantity savings deals. For example, today I bought a 4-pack of Bic men’s razors, normally $3.87, but the next 98 customers who purchased it got $2 off. Total checkout price, $2.01! Even if that wasn’t a great deal, I’m happy to have been able to save myself one major parenting headache.

By: Kirsten

Kirsten — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 20:20:37 +0000

It is worth mentioning that Alice is only available to those US residents who live within the contiguous 48 states. Residents of Alaska and Hawaii are out of luck for the time being.

By: Derek

Derek — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:21:29 +0000

My wife compared some prices (as she purchases more pharmacy products) and noted that while the prices *seem* cheaper, the quantity is actually less than you can find at a store. While I like the idea, this is why stores break down prices per gram, per 100 capsules, or other equivalent quantity. Make sure you do the math and are sure of what you actually receive before you buy anything, from Alice.com or any other online retailer.

By: Jakob

Jakob — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:26:24 +0000

Shana, don’t the big box stores actually declutter a whole strip of independent stores?

Many people clearly prefer them, or they wouldn’t be succeeding. This is the beauty of the fiercely democratic marketplace.

By: Shana

Shana — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 05:36:50 +0000

@Sandy: yes, I consider them local, because they employ local people. My bigger point, I guess, is that the fewer people who shop at grocery stores, pharmacies, hardware stores, etc., the fewer of them there ARE, and then you have a town with four Walmarts, two Home Depots, and no other options. The big-box stores are doing a fine job of taking market share from smaller and/or more local stores, and I don’t see a compelling reason to make the problem worse by shopping online for things that CAN be bought locally. I want to retain my option to shop in my town at specialized stores with better selections and (usually) more knowledgeable staff.

I guess it boils down to what your priorities are. For some people, it’s price or convenience. For me, it’s using my dollars in the most socially and environmentally responsible way, to support my community. To tie it in to clutter, I’d rather see existing businesses succeed than see them abandoned and new big-box stores constructed, and more traffic congestion and fuel usage resulting from people shopping online for things they’re perfectly able to get in stores where they live. It just seems a bit crazypants to me.

In the case of the poster with the special bars for diabetes, that I can absolutely see. I have no issue with buying things online if they can’t be found in town, but basic dry goods don’t fall into that category, and I think ordering a 20-lb. box of stuff that appears in a handful of local stores is wasteful, lazy, and encouraging our society to head down a bad road. Sure, it’s easy, and convenient, and whatever, but what if we ALL did what was convenient for us, with no eye toward the greater good? I’m thinking that the “every man for himself” thing played a part in this here recession we’re in….

By: Smallweed

Smallweed — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 00:03:01 +0000

Thanks for this, Erin. I’m trying it out; just placed my first order. I detest the amount of shopping needed to keep a family afloat. I’m hoping this will whittle it down a little bit. Less shopping = bliss.

By: Kat

Kat — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 22:14:14 +0000

I honestly don’t have the time to read even one of the 41 comments, but if it hasn’t already been suggested – diapers.com has been a lifesaver with 3 in diapers. They sell all things baby and shipping is free. I can order on Sunday and have a month’s supply by Tuesday. My UPS man swears that they can’t be diapers because they are so heavy!

By: CCherry

CCherry — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 22:00:49 +0000

@Sandy- I argue that yes, even the big chain stores are local in that they employee local people and collect sales tax and pay property tax that supports the locale where they are.

By: Alice

Alice — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:43:35 +0000

If you need a referral code to get the $10 credit, you can use 5B611678

By: Heather

Heather — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:01:07 +0000

The concept’s great but http://www.alice.com doesn’t carry everything I need so I’ll still have to hit Costco and the local market for supplies. I might as well pick up the rest of the dry goods there, too, since the prices are similar.

By: Nancy

Nancy — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:40:44 +0000

For me this looks fabulous, I live in a remote, rural area (population 400-500) and the local store is usually 100% higher than Wal-mart or the grocery store an hour away in the next larger town and I just can’t afford to over pay that much to support a local store. I also tend to be rushed when I am shopping out of town and being able to focus on fresh items and not worry about the staples will be a time/frustration saver.

By: Jessica

Jessica — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:05:46 +0000

Based on the few items I selected, the prices are significantly higher than what I would pay at Target, so it’s not worth it to me, based on my household usage of these kinds of items.

By: Sarah S.

Sarah S. — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:28:19 +0000

Thank you for this post. This website is a great way to supplement the natural, organic grocery store we use, as they do not carry everyday dry goods. With Alice, I have the option to continue shopping at the local store, without having to also patronize Walgreens and Target. My local market is supported, the chain stores are left out, and I don’t waste a whole day driving around. Stupendous!

By: Barbara Tako

Barbara Tako — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:12:04 +0000

I like the concept of http://www.alice.com. I think they have more work to do: offer more products, provide more information on each product (for example, I couldn’t tell how many milligrams of glucosamine were in each tablet of a bottle I was considering for purchase).

By: Sandy

Sandy — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:06:35 +0000

I do buy produce and perishables locally but are Walmart, Cosco, CVS and the supermarkets like Albertsons or Safeway local?

By: Soochi

Soochi — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:20:24 +0000

Some of the things I buy, I can’t easily buy locally, or at least not reliably, such as special diabetic health bars, etc. They have them intermittently at the local supermarkets and, even then, not the full range of flavors. I do agree with buy locally when you can but it’s not always a good option.

By: Soochi

Soochi — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:17:34 +0000

I buy certain things like this at Amazon, and I get free shipping on everything. They have an excellent range of choices of name brands, too. I’m very happy with my experience at Amazon.

By: Shana

Shana — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 06:34:47 +0000

Nope. The more people who do this, the fewer brick-and-mortar stores there will be. I make the conscious, deliberate choice to buy everything I can locally, to help stave off the big-box-ification of every last city, town, and village in America. We don’t need more ways to buy things online that can easily be purchased where we live, for goodness’ sake! Next thing you know, we’ll be able to order gas online and have someone come fill up our cars for us. It’s gone too far when you can’t be bothered to pick up some toothpaste & TP.