Amazon Is Trustworthy?

[Flippy]

Ok, first I want to clarify that the pen that I want is directly from Amazon, and nobody is selling through Amazon. I was wondering, does Amazon buy through the manufacturers, and does anyone know why one of my fav pens is on for sale at such a low price? (Not telling u!)

[matteob]

They buy in huge numbers and that is what helps to keep the prices somewhat low.I have found fewer bargains on Amazon these days now they have achieved their dominant position.

[Chrissy]

Amazon still seem to have regular bargains on particular pens here.

[TheRealMikeDr]

Amazon is trustworthy. That's not to say that 100% of their vendors are - but rather if you buy something from them and it is not as advertised then you can easily return it for a full refund.

[Komboloi]

I agree that Amazon is trustworthy in the sense that they won't rip you off, and you can return items.

 

But are you sure they are out there buying fountain pens at wholesale for retail sale on their website? Because they are good about taking returns, they may be taking returns of fountain pens sold through Amazon, then reselling them as items sold by Amazon.

 

How exactly does a $100 fountain pen end up in an Amazon warehouse so that it can be offered for sale on Amazon Prime with 2 day shipping? Again, I think the question is: Does Amazon really buy expensive unblemished brand new fountain pens from manufacturers or distributors and stock them in their warehouses? Or does Amazon acquire that stock via returns? Until I know the answer to that question, I'd be leery buying an expensive pen being sold by Amazon. I don't want a pen that has been returned by someone else unless I know the full story.

 

I'd rather buy an expensive pen being sold on Amazon by a third-party retailer if that third-party retailer has a good reputation. I've had good success with some Japanese retailers. And because Amazon is trustworthy, if one of them rips me off (which hasn't happened yet) I can turn somewhere.

[jar]

Ok, first I want to clarify that the pen that I want is directly from Amazon, and nobody is selling through Amazon. I was wondering, does Amazon buy through the manufacturers, and does anyone know why one of my fav pens is on for sale at such a low price? (Not telling u!)

Ask. You can always contact Amazon and ask such questions.

[OmegaMountain]

I have no issue buying things fulfilled by Amazon. Their guarantee is solid and they are a volume retailer - they have nothing to gain from selling fakes. I have also seen a sharp decline in their good deals though. Even as a Prime member I find myself ordering more and more from smaller retailers like Vanness and Goulet. Their customer service is superior and I get piece of mind by supporting small business.

[Sergio 46]

No problem with Amazon, and last year, during the sales, some FPs , Diplomat for instance, were sold with prices reduced by 60 or 70%! But this year it's over.

[Guardy]

Yo, got a super cheap pen (35€ instead of... oh, 175€?) over Amazon once, and at least in my case, it was a perfectly fine, new, un-inked pen (as far as I could tell).

I'd say go for it; I'm pretty sure you should at least be able to return the pen without problems if it does turn out to be fishy.

[senzen]

My best purchasing experiences have been with Amazon: completely trustworthy, will try to do the right thing when things go wrong. On the other hand working for Amazon sounds like a nightmare.

[Kataphract]

Amazon is pretty good to deal with. I did have one third party vendor put up fake messages about how they put the product in the mail, but Amazon booted them swiftly and returned the money with a bonus for my trouble. They are very good about dealing with problems and refunds. And even with the third party sellers, only had trouble with the one mentioned.

[Freddy]

I repeat the aforementioned...Ask..Contact Amazon re your questions.

 

For your consideration....try not to worry about saving a few shekels..

ducats..bucks..greenbacks..ya know Moola.....Consider purchasing from

well known vendors in Boston..NYCity..L.A., Atlanta..and developing

a relationship with'em......When you finish high school..university..

and you have disposable income..they will work with you.............

 

Of course this is my personal opinion and no reason for you to reply

to the above...............................................................................................

 

Fred

[virgilio]

I bought about 100 articles on amazon last year, and had to ask for a refund only maybe a half dozen times. It would have been no refunds necessary at all if I had known that just because a seller is listed as having no feedback on the product page, that DOESN'T mean they are a newbie seller; amazon doesn't list their feedback up front if their feedback is too bad. I inadvertently bought some items from sellers with 90% or more negative feedback, meaning they rarely even bother to ship ANYTHING to ANYBODY. Why does amazon tolerate their presence. Ki se?

 

Amazon is a pretty reliable seller, much better than ebay for instance. i have often wondered why amazon doesn't sell new-in-box and vintage fountain pens (or encourage third-party sellers to sell them). You have to deal with ebay for that, but ebay is much more particular about requiring you to have the very latest browser and jump thru a lot more hoops than amazon requires.

[Maurizio]

My best purchasing experiences have been with Amazon: completely trustworthy, will try to do the right thing when things go wrong. On the other hand working for Amazon sounds like a nightmare.

Ditto. Apparently a high pressured nasty place to work. I've been a customer for more than 10 years. Trustworthy. Recently got a full refund immediately for a clothing item advertised as 100% colton - sold by Amazon not a 3rd party - which was all polyester.

 

I've ordered a couple of nice pens direct from Japan at nice prices sold via Amazon. Prices are lower on these pens direct from Japan than are possible for some reason at retail. Recently got a Pilot VP Cherry Wood direct from Japan for a full $100. less than any price I could find in the US. I'd prefer not to order from Amazon and I try to go to my local brick and mortar store when I can but for some items the prices are unbeatable.

Edited January 21, 2017 by Maurizio

[Parker51]

I don't buy pens from Amazon due to their horrible customer interface. Now if they had a decent customer interface I might actually enjoy browsing and if a pen was priced right I might buy. The only items I have bought are ink. The inks iare quit nice, but it was annoying shopping for them. I only bought them from Amazon because I had a gift certificate.

[virgilio]

Parker51, try the Chengyida Hero 616s up on amazon in packs of 10, only $17, and they write VERY NEARLY as good as my... Parker 51. They are the genuine article, with sturdy construction thruout. You do have to slightly spring the nib (by pressing very lightly down on it a few times) when you first ink them to get a good ink flow, but that is very common with fountain pens of course.

 

amazon works a lot better on a mobile device, by the way, altho a few of the less-important functions are disabled.

[inkstainedruth]

Parker51, try the Chengyida Hero 616s up on amazon in packs of 10, only $17, and they write VERY NEARLY as good as my... Parker 51. They are the genuine article, with sturdy construction thruout. You do have to slightly spring the nib (by pressing very lightly down on it a few times) when you first ink them to get a good ink flow, but that is very common with fountain pens of course.

 

Uh, seriously? Springing the nib lightly is common practice? That sounds like a really bad idea if you ask me (and makes me wonder what pens you're using that would make such practice necessary...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[OmegaMountain]

Here's my beef with Amazon: ordered an Osprey day pack for vacation and literally 12 hours later it's 50% cheaper. I contact them about possibly refunding me the difference and they tell me they don't do that. Now, I can return the pack on their dime for return shipping and re-order the exact same item again at the 50% savings (which was about $25) and achieve what I wanted but the wasted resources to do this astound me. Ultimately, I just kept the thing because I couldn't justify the waste to go through that process. But, that really started to turn me off to Amazon. You don't have to worry about fake merch if you buy direct from them, but you may have to deal with their increasingly deteriorating policies.

Edited January 21, 2017 by OmegaMountain

[CAG_1787]

I've always had good experience, both in ink and pens. Amazon is one of those places I wouldn't want to build a career, but seems to offer a unique support for the consumer.

[Flippy]

Thanks everyone! I ordered today and it's coming in about 2-3 weeks (I live abroad from the US as of 3 years ago.)