AMAZON FOUR-STAR STORE

I recently visited an Amazon 4-Star store. I had no idea what to expect, other than my assumption that every product in the store was rated 4 stars or above.

(My daughter asked why they didn’t have a 5-star store. I tried to explain that it would be virtually impossible, since if a product had 49 5-star reviews and one 4-star review, it would drop the average below 5 stars.)

The first thing I realized was that it wasn’t a bookstore. There were a few books, but there were mostly other products. Later, the cashier informed me that their selection is constantly changing, and includes some cool and trending products, not just bestsellers.

There were definitely many interesting products. The prices of most of the products seemed quite reasonable to me, plus when I looked closer, I noticed that Prime members save even more, and the savings is often significant.

My daughter found a Harry Potter item that she wanted. Normally, I wouldn’t have paid $75 for it, but I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw that the Prime price was less than $30. Most of the Prime discounts were more modest, but as I mentioned earlier, most of the prices seemed reasonable to begin with.

I also found the same toy that I had ordered online a few days previously, and it was $55 (or $69 for non-Prime members) in the store, whereas I had paid $130 online. Well, it was easy to decide to return my online purchase and buy the one in the store instead.

Even the Amazon gift card that I purchased is really cool. It looks like a small Amazon Prime box, and inside you put the gift card.

I was a little worried about getting my Prime savings, but it turned out to be far easier than I had imagined. I didn’t need to download an app. I didn’t need to remember my password. All I had to do was use any credit card (perhaps there are a few restrictions of which I’m unaware) that I’ve ever used to make a purchase on Amazon. When I inserted my credit card at checkout, the system did indeed recognize my card and it applied my Prime savings.

I instantly received an email receipt on my phone, too (though they also gave me a paper copy in my bag).

My visit to the Amazon 4-Star store was interesting, fun, and provided me with unexpected savings. Even my trip to the store was a surprise. I had no idea there was an Amazon store where I would be visiting.

It was cool to discover Amazon in a store.

Write Happy, Be Happy

Chris McMullen

Author of the Improve Your Math Fluency series of math workbooks and self-publishing guides