18 votes

Groceries off the grid!

It takes a lot to get me excited these day, but once I found out I could transcend the government just a little bit more with my grocery shopping...I WAS THRILLED.

Whole Foods and Target are available in gift card form on the website Gyft.com, and the website accepts Bitcoin as payment! (and you earn points with every purchase) I hope this makes everyone's day! :)


Comment viewing options


Best news on the DP all day!

Thanks for sharing - I've already notified people. This is awesome. TAX FREE SHOPPING WOOHOOOOO!

Thanks for the information.

Thanks for the information. I'm going to try this out this weekend and probably start moving out my entire WholeFoods/Amazon budget to gift-cards via bitcoins.

The exchange rate looks good enough and the rewards points for bitcoin spending is close to 3%. Unfortunately my salary is in FRN (actually some digital bank digits to be exact) and so I have to first convert them to bitcoin to start using them. But this seems far better morally and economically :)

If there comes a competitor of Gyft, who stops accepting FRN/CC and accepts only bitcoin, I will move to them instantly.

What's the appeal?

You're going to convert your salary from FRNs to bitcoins. Then use gyft to convert the bitcoins into a gift card denominated in FRNs, and spend those FRNs at the store. Is the appeal of this that you hope that between the time you buy the bitcoins and the time you convert them back to FRNs the exchange rate will have gone in your favor?

Thats the tangible part of

Thats the tangible part of the appeal.

The intangible parts are that
* now my bank doesn't know where I spend my money. They don't have to give the chart that I spend 10% on restaurants, 10% on groceries etc..
* I try to remove FRNs from one end of my transactions and push the FRN conversion to another party.
* This will also be a practical learning experience of not thinking and acting in terms of fiat currency.
* I might get enlightened and start actively looking for a job that pays in or sell my services for BTCs.

Great answer!


How is this off the grid?

Doesn't "off the grid" mean electrical power not supplied by the power company?

Assuming we are extending this analogy to mean money without the dollar, this is still not off the grid. Until you can earn income with bitcoins, you are not off the grid, since you have to earn dollars and then use those dollars to purchase bitcoins. And by earned income, I don't mean you made a one time profit when the price of bitcoin went up from your purchasing price. I mean an actual income stream.

-Njal Thorgeirsson

this is a great service

i've used gyft.com several times in the last week or so and love it. it's very easy and fast plus if you pay with bitcoin you get a big discount.

here's a quick how-to using your smart phone from derrick j. you can also just use your regular computer and go to their website (faster and easier).

How to Spend Bitcoins Anywhere Just Like Cash!

Official Daily Paul BTC address: 16oZXSGAcDrSbZeBnSu84w5UWwbLtZsBms
My ฿itcoin: 17khsA7MvBJAGAPkhrFJdQZPYKgxAeXkBY

Newz to me!

I like the gifting speed and convenience

Real Deal Right Here


THIS is THE best thing I have heard in a while. However, I guess it's too late to jump in now :(

Holy crap...

This is a way to monetize the bitcoin. I've always thought of bitcoin doing this with some sort of card, for instance, a bitcoin card, but the problem comes with authentication. I'm no expert, but the problem at least to my understanding today, is that it takes time to process the transaction. Buying a gift card in advance removes any delay, and centralizes the process.

Here is a question, my wife has from time to time been hard to shop for, and just flat out asked for a gift card. I've found a "credit card" of sorts that is prepaid that can purchase anything. Visa offers them. This might be a link between the bitcoin economy and the real world.

The problem I face is when I'm paid by my tenants, I then use their FRN to purchase the bitcoin. I still have to use my FRN to do so... but, here is the part that has the biggest implications, what if YOU accept bitcoins for payment. YOU are paid in bitcoins, this starts the chain for you completely off grid. I'm kind of all over the place here, but, it does get one thinking. Free markets are awesome...