The Inexpensive Costs of E-Commerce

This week John Oliver talked about the impacts of e-commerce in today’s markets, and while I agree the reports of working conditions in warehouses associated with the industry can be brutal on employees, and safer working conditions and policies should be implemented. He has overlooked a major factor as to why many consumers prefer online shopping in the first place and why it's cheaper.

With rising costs of goods and products around us, along with slow growth in living wages at the lower to middle income levels, shopping at retail outlets that include overhead in their pricing have become unaffordable to the average consumer. Who also have to deal with increasing costs of utilities and other fundamental living expenses (such as rent, fluctuating insurance rates, education and medical expenses, and commuting).

E-commerce isn't about being lazy: It's a convenient form of shopping, but it is also about saving money in a time where the costs of living has been outpacing household incomes and living wages, for a while now.