LABJ FORUM: No Need to Shop Until You Drop
Mall attendance is down and online shopping is up. It appears, on the surface at least, that there is a trend at work: this year’s holidays may see more online transactions. So the Business Journal asks:
Do you intend to do more online shopping this year?
Heidi Ellen Robinson
Senior Vice President
of Media & Public Relations
Artistdirect Inc.
Absolutely. Is there any other way to shop? I think heaven is spelled A-M-A-Z-O-N-dot-C-O-M. There are no lines online, there’s no rude person asking me if I need help. Likewise, there’s no lack of nice people to help me out. The parking is great, I don’t have to get dressed up. To me, shopping online is kind of similar to having a computer you have no idea how you lived before. The thing is I hate shopping but I love shopping online. So I probably spend five times as much money (online). It’s just so easy. I’ve done so much of it, I’ve memorized my credit card number.
Michael Mayers
Director of Public and Government Affairs
SCAN Health Plan
Sure. I’ll probably do all my Christmas shopping on Amazon.com. I have a small family, so it’s easy, but also the time convenience. I don’t really like the Christmas crowds and Amazon is one-stop shopping, you never have to leave the house.
Phil Lempert
Food Trends Editor
NBC’s Today Show
Definitely. Clearly, for me, who has become addicted to buying my books and CDs from Amazon, buying online has become a way of life. I’m going to be buying more food gifts online for friends and family. Instead of going to a traditional retailer, I can impress my friends with little known delicacies, from chocolates on echocolates.com to cheeses from maytagbluecheese.com. Typically, I don’t buy clothes on the Internet. I’m one of those people who still likes to touch and feel the clothes before I buy them.
Christine Silvestri
Vice President of Marketing
L.A. Mart
Possibly. Not yet, though. I’m recovering from foot surgery. If I were walking better, I would not be. Frankly, online shopping doesn’t interest me much. I like going out to see the product and get ideas. But since I have this foot injury, I will do more online shopping this year. I like the convenience of that, but I’d still rather go shopping, believe it or not.
Mark Meyers
Director of Communications
Los Angeles Sports Council
I don’t think any more than normal, and I don’t do much. Pretty much the only thing I buy online is airline tickets. For my Christmas shopping I guess I’ll go to the malls, but I haven’t attacked that dilemma just yet. But I don’t shop much on the Internet. I like to see and touch items before I buy them. I get solicited all the time to buy things on the Internet, but I haven’t seen anything that appeals to me.