Doordash — Blog — Healy Chen

Splitting it four ways

Word on the street is DoorDash is partnering with Klarna to offer split payments. So now you can pay for that $30 (in total) delivery burrito in four easy monthly payments. Wonderful. I can finally afford to use DoorDash! Peasants who actually drive to the restaurants to pickup their own food: I cannot be you.

It’s hilarious to me that in response to high inflation, instead of abstaining from things that’s gotten too expensive, people are seeking methods to lower the initial cost! Can you really afford that couch if you have to split it over four months? I would argue no, though I understand the pressure. Even couches from famously inexpensive retailer IKEA are getting up there in price.

A used couch with curious provenance on Facebook marketplace it is.

Maybe our university can attract more students if it also partners with Klarna: tuition payments over many months. Oh wait, those already exists. it’s called student loans.

How another person spends their money (or borrows money to spend) is their business. These are consenting adults consenting to a purchase agreement. You cannot be victim of capitalism if you choose to participate. Of course we can’t not participate, but the bare minimum to subsist is not overwhelming. I get it, though: eating rice, beans, and chicken breast for every single meal is torturous.

So get that sushi takeout delivered via DoorDash! You deserve it. And by splitting it four ways using Klarna, you can afford it, too.

Price of the brick

Amazon Prime is raising its membership fee for the first time in four years. The service goes to $139 per year, up from $119. The slow boil of the frog that is inflation continues unabated. Netflix also recently hiked its rates; the top 4K tier of service is now $20 a month. I sure hope your account gets shared between four people to lessen the cost burden. Have you ordered food from DoorDash recently? The prices of every restaurant has gone up. Though here in San Francisco that may have something to do with the minimum wage increase too.

The $20 increase is not going to make me cancel my subscription. Amazon knows this, of course. I bet the vast majority of Prime users will simply shrug off the price hike like its nothing. With about 150 million subscribers, that’s a quick and handy profit (150 x $20) of $3 billion dollars. Just a figurative flick of the switch. The law of large numbers is indeed amazing.

The reason I’m not cancelling is because I make the annual fee back in credit card points. The Amazon Prime Visa card gives 5% back on all purchases done on Amazon (and Whole Foods) - so long as you are a subscriber to Prime. WIth the large amount of spending I do with Amazon, I make more than enough money back to at least break even on membership fee. All the while I’m enjoying the benefits of free two-day shipping, and the vast catalog of shows on Prime Video.

That said, it’s certainly not great to see the price going up, not only with Amazon Prime but seemingly everywhere. I’ve certainly used DoorDash way less these days. Order of a single item is at least $20 dollars now, once factoring in all the fees and tips. It’s really handy to live within walking distance to a mall with decent food options.