From a couple people’s responses to this, I’m sensing that maybe readers think I’m knocking e-commerce or saying that shopping in a store is better than shopping online. Not at all.

I think that what I’m trying to say is that now that we have a choice between the two, physical space retail is and should adjust accordingly to survive—just as online retailers have incorporated what we like about stores into their own “spaces” (like the virtual model). It will be interesting to see and compare how both further evolve down the road in response to how shopping habits change.

One thing I realized today is that so many sites I visit have live support. Many prompt you as soon as you go onto the site to see if you have any questions or need help finding anything, just like in a real store.

I also have been thinking about doing the online grocery thing. I spend a lot of money going out to eat because I hate grocery shopping so much and consequently never have anything in the house. I think if I could order food from home or from my phone it would be amazing!

And though I have never bought groceries over the internet, I read a blog post about it today, and it occurred to me that in the midst of a Canadian winter, with a toddler and three flights of stairs, it might seem like a pretty good idea.