'It's easy to boycott Amazon at Christmas'

Independent reader Anna Laycock joined a boycott of internet giant Amazon earlier this year in protest at the firm's tax-avoidance policies.

"I've never been comfortable using Amazon because of their dominance, but the fact that its UK arm paid less than 0.1 per cent tax in 2012 was the push I needed to leave them," she said.

"Since then, I've actually enjoyed finding alternatives and being a bit more engaged as a consumer."

She relied on a list of alternatives compiled by Ethical Consumer magazine. "It was vital. Otherwise I wouldn't have had the time to research the best options."

She uses her local bookshop, Grove, in Ilkley, West Yorkshire. "They're fantastic – super quick on email and really efficient when you go in."

She downloads from Fairshare Music. "I find everything I want to suit my random tastes, and they have £5 offers on new albums every week."

She also cancelled her LoveFilm subscription after discovering it was bought out by Amazon. "Now we buy box sets or borrow from friends."

Ethical Consumer magazine's list of alternatives to Amazon is at bit.ly/1blfSiy .