nternet shopping has fallen and is back to 2001 levels

no, it didn't really surprise. any kind of consumer spending has gone down these days. but personally, i cut down on my internet shopping for a different reason. for awhile there i was really into ebay (loved outbidding another member =). but my problem was, a lot of the things didn't really fit me well when i got it or it didn't look as good as the picture. not to mention the added cost for shipping. so, with the exception of gadgets (which was the first thing i bought online), i do my shopping on regular stores.

No, it doesn't surprise me. I love to shop online. However, there are drawbacks to it. Shippinmg costs can be insane. Why pay shipping if you can just purchase it onine? Returns can be annoying and costly. I bought something online. They sent me the wrong size. I have the online order and the store recipt which shows it was the store's fault. When I called the store, I told them what happened an they said they were sorry for the mistake but I would have to pay the shipping to return the item. Needless to say, I never shopped at that store or its website again. There's also the wait. Orders can take awhile to be processed and shipped.

thanks for best response hon

I'm assuming you are talking about the stores on the internet offering fixed price items. If the auctions would go back to 2001 levels, it would be great for those of us who sell at auction. It seems like every year is worse than the year before. 2001 was a very good year as I recall and I would gladly go back to that.

I guess it makes sense that if people are spending less money, then they won't be spending as much on the internet. So, it doesn't surprise me. It is pretty convenient to order items and have them shipped directly to the person. The current economic crisis is affecting alot of areas of our life, isn't it?

I only shop online for things likd DVD, books and such - those things that are exactly what they are. Clothes and things like that - have to try them on. I want to see the quality of the fabric nad things like that. IF I buy it and it doesn't fit, I have to pay shipping AGAIN to send it back. I know that the cost of shiping usuall cancels the state sales tax, so I dont' have a problem with it, but just for returns, it sure is a hassel. I also know that alot of places such as Ebay - and the like, very high shipping costs are prominent and I just won't do that. I mean, they have their item at $2, but shipping is $20 - I would pay $22 for the item, but since the seller is cheating to get low final value fees charged to them by Ebay... I won't accomodate sellers that do like that! If they are dishonest with their company to one side, who's to say they are going to be honest with a customer.

It doesn't surprise me at all. It isn't just online shopping that is feeling the effects of the recession. Retail sales in stores have posted their biggest decline in years. Plus major retailers are filing bankrupsy and going or closing all together (Circuit City and Linens and Things for example). Christmas sales are predicted to be way down as well. Job layoffs and forclosures are at their worst in decades. We have cut our shopping way down but we still do shop on the internet because like you say, it is more convenient. We also don't tend to overspend that way...we only get what we need. I hope things turn for the better soon.

It doesn't surprise me one bit, everything is so expensive and people do not have much money. I know for me it is not worth shopping on the internet by the time I pay shipping charges and duty charges it comes out the same as if I bought from here in montreal.

I leave the internet shopping to my husband, but we don't tend to buy much off the net, just a few christmas gifts etc. I like to go to the supermarket to do the food shopping. I did do the food shopping on line but I spent too much money, I think it had somethnig to do with not having to carry the food home. I spend a lot less if I go to the supermarket