I haven't used Amazon for years, ever since finding out how badly they treat people and the environment. In fact, if I had my way, my company also wouldn't be using ANY service Amazon offered. I genuinely believe that the entire world would be better off if the entirety of Amazon just blinked out of existence today.
Why would I bother ordering a knife if I didn't like it that much? It's way more fun to do the research then just to purchase willy-nilly. I do use the returns if, despite my research, the knife isn't to my liking. But that usually means there's something wrong with it or the pictures/description weren't representative. That is a risk of the seller and it can be assumed to be calculated into the price point. I do try to make an assessment whether using the returns policy is 'fair'. In practice, I've hardly returned any knives I bought.
There are hardly any brick-and-mortar stores with a good offering of knives within driving distance. And what stores there are, are hard to visit during lockdown (you can visit on appointment now, and they've been closed for months before). The Dutch Knife Exhibition was one of the very few occasions where one could physically handle a wide selection of knives, and that had been canceled too. So there's very little opportunity to physically handle a new knife before buying it. That does change things. I've been into knives for a good while, now, and I can usually gauge whether I am going to like a knife by doing desk research. But if you are new to the hobby, you can't really go without the physical handling imho. Retailers here are mostly online and one could argue that they have an interest in letting people handle their knives even that means more returns. After all, if it means more people buying knives or even getting into the hobby, it builds business.
And last, but not least, I don't really care if a knife has been fondled before as long as it's in good order. I buy knives that are built well and are robust. If someone else holding it would diminish the knife in any way, then it is a poor knife. As long as everything is in order, who cares if other people handled it before? It's the same with shoes and cars. Even new shoes have been tried on by others in the store before you bought them. Even new cars have been driven in (and very often, damaged) for transport and storage. It's all stuff that's meant to be used. It just means the seller needs to inspect and clean the goods before reselling them. Or maybe offer a little discount or something.
Why would I bother ordering a knife if I didn't like it that much? It's way more fun to do the research then just to purchase willy-nilly. I do use the returns if, despite my research, the knife isn't to my liking. But that usually means there's something wrong with it or the pictures/description weren't representative. That is a risk of the seller and it can be assumed to be calculated into the price point. I do try to make an assessment whether using the returns policy is 'fair'. In practice, I've hardly returned any knives I bought.
There are hardly any brick-and-mortar stores with a good offering of knives within driving distance. And what stores there are, are hard to visit during lockdown (you can visit on appointment now, and they've been closed for months before). The Dutch Knife Exhibition was one of the very few occasions where one could physically handle a wide selection of knives, and that had been canceled too. So there's very little opportunity to physically handle a new knife before buying it. That does change things. I've been into knives for a good while, now, and I can usually gauge whether I am going to like a knife by doing desk research. But if you are new to the hobby, you can't really go without the physical handling imho. Retailers here are mostly online and one could argue that they have an interest in letting people handle their knives even that means more returns. After all, if it means more people buying knives or even getting into the hobby, it builds business.
And last, but not least, I don't really care if a knife has been fondled before as long as it's in good order. I buy knives that are built well and are robust. If someone else holding it would diminish the knife in any way, then it is a poor knife. As long as everything is in order, who cares if other people handled it before? It's the same with shoes and cars. Even new shoes have been tried on by others in the store before you bought them. Even new cars have been driven in (and very often, damaged) for transport and storage. It's all stuff that's meant to be used. It just means the seller needs to inspect and clean the goods before reselling them. Or maybe offer a little discount or something.
