nandnjudge2

Some readers might be interested to know the following

To try it out I purchased from Amazon.es a pressure cooker that could also be purchased from Amazon.co.uk and the Spanish web site quoted a price £10 cheaper than UK PLUS free delivery to Portugal. I was quoted from the UK 7 days paid delivery and it transpired that the pressure cooker took just 48 hours to arrive from Amazon’s Madrid warehouse.

This purchase may have been a one off experience but let us watch this space.

In recent months I have switched quite a few of my purchases from Amazon UK to Spain because of the terrible time taken to get any thing delivered from the UK, this latest announcement is an added bonus.

Announcement

As from November 8, Amazon’s service centre in Spain will not charge shipping costs to those customers in Portugal who spend over €29, or €19 on books.
The Spanish on-line subsidiary of the US giant explains that customers in Portugal will have access to "more than 165 million products across all categories" without having to pay postage charges.
"Some of the fashion brands available from Amazon in Spain are the Zippy, Salsa and Tiffosi clothing brands, as well as Fly London footwear," but if these mean nothing to you, a search in the electronics or books section may be more enlightening.
François Nuyts, vice-president and country manager of Amazon.es said, "Portuguese customers will also find a selection of products on Amazon.es that are specially targeted to their preferences, such as local fashion brands and thousands of books by Portuguese authors."
Amazon confirmed that November 24 is Black Friday and customers in Portugal will be able to join in.
Those able to pick their way through the Spanish website also can find a wealth of books in English available in hardback, paperback and electronic versions.
Hardbacks from Spain may be more exensive than ordering from the UK - buyer beware and compare the total cost from both countries.
https://www.amazon.es/

Ukkram

Last year I ordered an item from Amazon.uk and it arrived 2 days later.......from Amazon.es!!!!
Not only was it cheaper but shipping was free from Spain. I was still charged the higher price and shipping from UK though.

I normally use Amazon.de as they have an English version.

nandnjudge2

I agree with you Amazon.de are also very good , I used them to set up my solar panel project, very quick, its in English but there is a delivery charge. What I like about Amazon.de is the supplier in person in most cases contacts me direct and sends me an official receipt so if any thing goes wrong I dont have to waste my time going back through Amazon . The Germans really know how to look after their customers no matter how small

nandnjudge2

I think it is just a question of time before Amazon.es will also offer customers an English version.

What I dont like about Amazon UK & ES is when one places an order they do not tell you that the seller is in China, they give you a delivery date anything between 7 days and one month, in most cases it is at least three weeks delivery if you are luck, anything that comes from China is held up by Portuguese customs that adds another week on to the buying process days

mfesharne

It should however be noted that there are often significant price variations between the various amazon sites.

For example, I've been looking at garden roller shredders & the best unit appears to be the Bosch AXT25 TC which on the UK site is £305.99 & on the Spanish version is €404 which translates to a difference of €58 or so.

nandnjudge2

Hello mfesharne

I agree with you one has to look around all three Amazon web sites for the best deal as there are so many variations in prices and delivery costs. A few week back I treated my self to an Ocean Digital Internet Radio and a mini 12 volt car amplifier to plug into some old speakers sitting around in the loft gathering dust. I was able in this case to buy both items from Amazon Spain almost £20 cheaper.

As I mentioned in a previous thread I am installing my own off the grid solar system and a key element were the batteries. You will never believe the problems I had buying them from anywhere even in Portugal. Getting them delivered to Portugal is a nightmare. I made two attempts one in Ebay UK and the second Amazon Germany and in both cases they never arrived , I had no problems getting full refunds

The best deal I could find that would deliver to Portugal came from Amazon Italy.

Before jumping in with both feet I thought as a last resort I would look at OLX Portugal and hey presto I found just what I was looking for from a supplier only one hours away from Valenca.

There are some really good deals to be had for the early bird from OLX Portugal

Last week following a stupid accident I needed to replace two wheels and tires for my Smart car

Amazon Germany had the best offers not surprising that it is a German car, here again
a last minute peep at OLX Portugal produced the bargain of the year, I was able to obtain four Smart Black alloys and four almost new Continentals for a total of Euros 325, the seller this time was only a few minutes away from the seller of the solar batteries.
Needless to say I was down there like a shot just in case he either changed his mind or some one offered more.

I asked the seller where did he dig those up from and he said he is a fisherman based in Germany and on returning back to Portugal after each trip he fills his car up with car spares and other items that he knows will sell on OLX without any problems. I asked what else did he have to offer and he pointed to an almost new German registered Mini Cooper. To be quite honest if it was not for the high cost of matriculation I may have been tempted to make him an offer.

chislenko

Remember the old days when you went to a shop to buy things and now when you want something that day all those shops have shut down.

nandnjudge2

Yes unfortunately what you say is true perhaps more in the UK than Portugal.
Where I live in Northern Portugal (Valenca) there are definite signs of green shoots with lots of small businesses opening up, most of them with Spanish money. There is even talk that on of the biggest Spanish supermarkets is looking to set up on the Portuguese even though they opened up last year on the Spanish side. All this activity is attracting lots of retail activity at the lower end at the right locations. This area is very much off the tourist map , very few Brits, Germans and the like so it is up to locals to organise them selves with the help of the Portuguese and Spanish authorities. The whole area has changed dramatically for the better in the last few years, coming with it retail habits and opportunities.