When it comes to buying your reusables, this is probably the place a lot of us flock to first. With free delivery for orders over £20 there’s no reason even to subscribe to Amazon Prime when that base price pretty much covers any item you want, plus something else you might have your eye on, as an up-sell.

It’s all psychologically triggering those parts of our brain that are wired to jump when we think are getting an amazing deal. But if we use our common sense to examine closer, are we really getting the best deal by shopping on Amazon?

We already know we’re getting duped by Black Friday…

I’ve said before that when you buy from Amazon the only person that really profits is Jeff Bezos. But my reasons for not shopping on Amazon, and for this blog, go beyond wanting to support small business and shop more ethically, they are about my own increasing dissatisfaction with Amazon as a shopping experience.

It’s time to be controversial. If we don’t say what we see then nothing ever changes…

Amazon is no longer the best place to buy…anything

I don’t know about you, but I’m getting super frustrated by any search that you do on Amazon now. It used to be a place where brands wanted to be known and you could pick up a genuine product for less than recommended retail price. Now when you search for something, all you get back is completely unknown words masquerading as brands: “Phogary”, “Rovtop”, “YueTech”, “Zcoins”, “Rgen”, “Innersy”… the list goes on.

I mean, who are these people and how do they think that coming up with some phoney brand name is going to convince me that they are really anything other than someone sat in China trying to manipulate me as a consumer into purchasing their sub-standard tat?

And it’s not just reusables and clothing, it’s everything you buy. Especially when it comes to gadgets. Amazon has typically been where I would go to search for something a bit “techy” (which to me extends to the occasional requirement of a charger cable or USB stick, nothing fancy). Yet I’m left thinking “what if this hasn’t passed any safety tests at all and catches fire”?

But because of our global economy and our insatiable desire to have everything as cheap as we can get it, a dodgy malfunctioning battery can happen to anyone, and it does.

How is this relevant to reusables?

One of the things that annoys me the most about these sellers is that they’re actually pretty obvious to spot. They don’t even word their product descriptions in a way that a native speaker of English would. And sorry if this makes me sound prejudiced, but I don’t want to buy from these people. Because you are way more likely to get ripped off with a poor quality product and not be able to get a refund.

£14.99 for a pack of 7 heavy flow pads plus a storage bag sounds like a bargain. But the likelihood is that you are paying for a multipack of period pads or period pants that are going to be filled with bulky cheap microfibre that bunches and leaks, and snaps or elastics that will work only twice before they break.

You might come across the odd genuine seller that is a UK business. But if they are selling on Amazon as opposed to via their own website I would ask myself the question: how much they are invested into their business? or are only out to make a quick and small margin?

There are some key things I would look out for to identify these types of non-uk sellers:

Phrases to avoid when buying on Amazon

• Napkins - no one who is a native speaker of English will ever describe a “sanitary” product as what you would use at the dinner table.

• Panties - a word that I just find abhorrent. Reeks of a mixture of child abuse and misogynist male dominated advertising. And I’m not the only one who agrees this word should be banned.

• “Charcoal infused” - this is usually used when referring to the top layer of a pad, in order to make it sound like you are getting a quality product made from naturally derived materials. In reality it means the cheapest plastic based fleece that they happen to have dyed a “charcoal” grey colour.

• Microfibre - always at the core of these pads. And this isn’t necessarily bad in itself; some of the branded pads I sell do have an absorbent microfibre core that works well. The question is are you getting a pad that is made with quality “zorb” that’s tightly packed and dense enough to absorb fluid down the length of the pad and contain it without leaking…or are you getting the equivalent of 1 of the cheapest microfibre kitchen cloths folded over and then sewn together inside?

• “Bamboo blend” - bamboo is my favourite absorbent fabric, yet the reality is that the fibres are always mixed with other fabric fibres to make it into a fabric, if that makes sense. How else do you transform a tree into cloth? it goes without saying. But any good brand should confirm the percentage of bamboo used in their fabric so you know it’s the major base material.

• “Eco friendly” - this phrase can mean literally anything. And if it’s used in an advert, is usually signifies “greenwashing”. A genuinely eco brand is eco in it’s DNA, and doesn’t need to shout about it in order to sell products.

Other clues to look for when shopping on Amazon or similar marketplace websites

• Always check the bad reviews before the good ones - the reviews that are hidden are kept out of the top view for a reason. Always read them to find out if someone is genuinely unhappy with the product or if they are simply marking it down because the delivery person left it in their wheelie bin. And then take the good ones with a pinch of salt, because they are most likely paid for.

• The same prints over and over - a lot of these pads and pants sellers are getting their products from the same manufacturer. And it shows. If it looks like the same pads you see on Aliexpress or even Etsy now as well, the profits are all going to be headed to the same people. Trust me, I get stalked by them to try to get me to stock these types of products all the time!

• Tiny, too young or emaciated looking models, or overtly sexual poses that look like a porn star - this also goes for any other item of clothing you might buy. If their model looks “sexy” as opposed to real, you know they are coming from a culture that still thinks sex sells and has no respect for real women’s bodies or diversity.

• Brands that try to use a similar name as other genuine reusable brands - if you know this market then you can easily tell these. Canny sellers use this tactic in case you search on Amazon for a particular brand. “NORA Pads” are obviously trying to imitate Bloom and Nora/Totsbots.

• Adverts that list more than one country of origin - sellers often state United Kingdom or Made in EU to make you think they are local, but they will usually always have a second country listed in the same advert, and in a spot you are probably very likely not going to see. Trust me, I am an analyst by profession and detail is my thing.

• Multiple or confusing material composition - their aim is to bamboozle you, but check the small print in detail so you know what you are getting. Or at least think you do.

• Pressure to buy now because their product is “the best” - good sales never comes from a place of arrogance, pressure or urgency. This is an out-dated tactic that reeks of desperation and doesn’t really work with savvy consumers. The best brands sell by reputation.

• If you can’t find the brand’s own website - it’s because it doesn’t exist.

• Most importantly - trust your own gut - if a deal looks too good to be true, then it probably is!

How can you avoid having to make this judgement?

I only make purchases on Amazon now if it’s a genuine branded product that I can’t get cheaper elsewhere. Which reduces their hold on my consumer power considerably. And I always do my research first.

The best thing you can do is to purchase from a small business that cares about stocking only the best quality, and brands who embody the highest ethical standards. Then all this detective work has already been done for you.

Get in touch and ask!

I’m always happy to answer questions or make a recommendation if you’re a bit stuck.

That’s exactly why I am here 🙂

Help guides

For more straight forward advice, have a read of my further blogs and information resources:

• Can you recommend a pad for me?

• Best pads for heavy periods

• Why I prefer reusable pads to period underwear

• The best sanitary pads for teens and tweens

• Period pants or underwear for girls under 10