Buy European in services: ready-to-use tips for ‘choosing European’
The world of online services is dominated by the United States, followed by China. Europe is merely a user. Those who stop at this superficial interpretation of the situation may never realise that there are, in fact, other options.
Our field research focused on five online categories (Marketplaces, Books and Audiobooks, Travel and Transport, Music and Podcasts, and Films and TV Series), in which we found excellent European alternatives that are fully functional and ready to use. Here they are, ready to go:
Marketplaces: fed up with Amazon (US)? It’s rather hard to be, given the breadth of its range, the speed of delivery and the good service. But there are three excellent European alternatives: Privalia (France, part of the Veepee group, excellent for fashion, home, beauty, leisure and sport), Galaxus (Switzerland, furniture, home, garden, IT, toys, beauty and office supplies), Zalando (Germany, clothing, sport, accessories, footwear).
Books and audiobooks: the charm of stepping into a bookshop, at least for this writer, remains unchanged and unrivalled, but sometimes it’s convenient to buy a book with just two clicks. Here too, Amazon has a very extensive catalogue, but speaking of alternatives for us Italians, we should remember that LaFeltrinelli, Mondadori Store and IBS Libri have excellent websites and a fantastic in-store collection service. In the world of audiobooks, to avoid Amazon and its Audible, there is the Swedish service Storytel, with a huge catalogue, the option to read eBooks (as well as listen to audio) and flexible plans for students.
Travel and transport: the market is dominated by the US, with the groups Booking Holdings (Booking, founded by a Dutchman but later sold to the Americans, Priceline, Kayak, Agoda, Cheapflights, Momondo, Rentalcars) and Expedia Group (Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo, Ebookers, CarRentals, Trivago). Add Airbnb to the mix and the picture is clear. What can be done? Here we must thank the Swiss-German world, as there are Lastminute (Swiss, offering flights, holiday packages and car hire), Holidu and Home to Go (both German, but with an Italian website allowing you to find holiday homes to rent worldwide) and HRS (Hotel Reservation Service, also German but with an Italian website and very user-friendly). For flight bookings, we have the Spanish company Edreams Odigeo, a small group that works well with the brands Opodo, eDreams and GO Voyages. Finally, when it comes to trains, things are simple as the well-known Trainline is British and works perfectly.
