http://www.notesfromspain.com/2011/0...changes-ahead/

Interesting reading, the knock on effect on local businesses could raise issues with smaller retailers.

http://www.amazon.es/

What annoys me about our Amazon purchases is that our local MRW lie, and say they've tried to deliver but we were out. They didn't and we weren't. Happens regularly. Seems to be a sneaky way of getting out of coming the 18km from the local depot. Are the Depots franchisees?

Deliveries seem to vary from area to area. My MRW delivery people are wonderful, very helpful and friendly.

My friend needed a particular text book for the course that she is undertaking. When she told me I suggested that she look in Amazon.es but she said that she was going to the book shops in Valencia the next day and would buy it there. After trailing around 5 bookshops she came home despondent and worn out so looked on the site in the afternoon, found the book 3 euros cheaper there, ordered it and it was delivered at 9 a.m. the following morning by MRW. She was delighted and said that she will look there first from now on.

Rosemary

Yes they are franchises, which explains the random quality of the various local depots.

We are blessed with a really good one who always phones us when we have a delivery. Other people I know in different areas have dreadful service and always end up having to go and collect the package.

My son is a network engineer for Amazon in the UK, the main distribution centres are owned by Amazon and the volume of daily dispatches is staggering, currently 200,000 items a day per depot (there maybe 10 or 20 items in a box but you get the idea)...double that over the xmas period.

'Lockers' are a new idea
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/help/cust...deId=200742950
They will drop off some goods at certain stores etc making it easier for you to pick up maybe on your break from work.

As much as I love local shops I admit that I buy online as much as possible, one thing is I have a greater choice/save cash and secondly I get 'queue rage' at checkouts.

I recently ordered from .co.uk site a package for the BH, using the Free Delivery in Europe. Came from the Uk, delivered in 3 days by MRW. Excellent service.

Now looking at Cotton Traders who have a Spain depot - anyone used them yet ? ?

Exactly the same for us.

I reckon they just try and input our address into googlemaps or something similar. Computer says no so they just don't bother trying to deliver or contacting me for directions.

Fortunately their depot is near our favourite wine shop so kill two birds with one stone.

I ordered an item from Amazon Spain yesterday at 11.30am. It arrived this morning at 10.30 via MRW. It originated from the depot in France.

It doesn't get much better than that!

Amazon is a waste of time for me.
Everything I have tried to order comes up with " Not available to your country"

Ordered Amazon - 2 days delivery from UK to Spain. Excellent service.

I am always ordering items off Amazon, especially on the grocery side - but MRW have got to be the worst couriers. My latest tracking info reads "The customer requested the appointment to be rescheduled" - total lie.

I've got sick and tired of arguing with MRW who just don't want to deliver this far out from the coast, they tell me they don't know where I live and that I live up a goat track......
In reality I live on a main road with a bus stop next door to our house.

We now have them deliver our parcels from Amazon to our daughters shop in Torremolinos, we collect it from there....it's so much easier than having the same argument with them in Spanish over the phone time and time again!

I'm glad I'm not the only one Meg And Battlezone. It was beginning to look like I was the 'liar' there for a while!

This random MRW problem is clearly affecting a lot of Amazon customers.

If you are having problems you should email Amazon - they are very responsive to customer complaints. That's about the only way it will get changed.

The name and address gives them a clue that you live up a goat track.

Heidi
c/o Grandad

Rosemary