June 2018 - When online shopping fails us, Old style bags are found. Attention Seekers
Date Posted:1 June 2018
“Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.” — Charles R. Swindoll
June 2018
Our opinion piece this month looks at how online shopping can fail us as simple, basic humans.
Roaster's Rant returns again with a zinger on attention seekers.
It's been hard to escape the European General Data Privacy Regulation (or GDPR) that came into effect on May 25 2018. A timely reminder for us to communicate our policies in relation to your personal details. We will never release or sell customer data - never. I take exception when my own privacy is invaded, so we carry this same principle into our business. This Newsletter is produced in-house and uses the industry leading subscriber application software to manage the list, ensuring compliance with all regulations and practices.
Around 2 years ago, one of our bag suppliers lost 17,500 of our custom coffee bags until they mysteriously appeared in an interstate freight depot last month.
As we had since moved on with our branding and designs, this recent discovery means we have a lot of radioactive green bags to use, so these will be used across a small number of our regular coffees, etc.
online shopping fails us humans
Back in the late 1990's and early 2000's, I often ordered technical books or special parts from the US or Europe as they weren't easily sourced or stocked by Australian companies.
We started our own e-commerce journey 12 years ago in the days when online shopping was the domain of the rare, unique or pre-loved items seeking a new home.
Fast forward to now when I spend most of my waking hours at work with no time to physically shop. Even the most simplest of things such are typically delegated to my darling wife (she's the best). It's forced me to live with a different mindset - anything I want or need is generally ordered in, even clothing and shoes bought late at night with the iPad resting on my lap just before my eyes close.
Now this is where the online model of "never having to go out" continues to fail me every time.
I had always imagined my body as being typical of your sporty Aussie male - albeit older, but still in decent shape from lifting tons and tons of coffee each week by hand.
However, it seems ordering clothing and shoes online is beyond me as it's never, ever resulted in a successful target and I'm sure my ridiculously stubborn Scottish nature means I won't give up until I finally have a win.
Sure, I've got sort of duck feet with one foot slightly larger than the other, but a recent purchase of expensive high-tech, lightweight safety boots ended in a river of tears. Within an hour of wearing, my toes were screaming and numb from being crunched into what can only be described as pointy toe safety boots. Women everywhere, I feel your pain.
Who designs such evil shoes and what were they possible thinking by having a narrowing taper "safety shoe"........ sinister torture ?. C'mon, blokes that wear safety boots need plenty of comfort, not style.
I checked all my other shoes and the size was right. Mysteriously, I went back online and zoomed over the picture online and it does not really show the true shape of the tapered safety shoe - kevlar reinforced, so there's no give or stretch. Hello, who's a wood duck then ?.
Similar fates awaited me earlier this year buying more work clothes online. The Large sized shirts were smaller than a 10 year old's and the shorts were........well, let's not go there and kinda glad I'm not in my reproductive era. Lucky I work behind locked doors out of sight.
This apparel hangs in my wardrobe out of sight, never to be worn - in fact the wardrobe of unworn, clothes purchased online is getting rather congested, rivaling my wife's extensive collection of fast fashion, except mine has no chance of being useful.
OK, I give up.....after 5 years of trying, I'm never, ever going to buy something to wear without first trying it on. Can't ever remember having such problems when buying clothes or shoes in a shop. In fact, I had always been rather chuffed with a typical male express clothes shopping technique, in and out in under 10 mins assuming I could access a change room without waiting in a queue.
The other day I read an insightful article by a young woman on LinkedIn trying to encourage her elderly father to embrace the internet - look at all the time you can save Dad by processing bills online instead of traveling and waiting at the bank.
You can even order your groceries and have them delivered into the kitchen. Her primary goal was to make it so easy her Dad never had to leave his house. Such a good daughter.
To her astonishment, her father responded by saying he enjoyed getting out an about. He talked to 5 people on his way to the bank yesterday and another friend whilst waiting inside. All the bank staff know him by name and delight in his stories.
He went on to proudly tell his daughter how when he was sick last year, the owner of his local fruit shop came and sat with him by his bed for hours and talked - apparently missing her father's daily chats.
This woman's father cherished the simple, human interactions of everyday life, the friendships, relationships and all the connected emotions. He looked forward to his daily walk around the streets chatting to people - it gave him a sense of purpose that could never be replaced sitting in front of a computer.
Roaster's Rant
Last month there was a disturbance in the force.
Not a great force, or even a great disturbance, but none the less, it was a movement of sorts, even if it only lasted 15 minutes.
Read our Roasters Rant article here