15 worst items to put on your holiday wish list

Amazon.com is a holiday shopping hub, but some oddities lurk within its vast catalog. Here's our picks for things you probably don't want to find waiting under the tree.

A 'pre-need' cremation plan
A 'pre-need' cremation plan

A strange press release popped up in journalists' inboxes this week: A company called Smart Cremation was hawking "pre-need cremation services" and said it had picked Amazon as the sales platform for its all-in-one plans. For $1,189, you could buy yourself or your loved ones a kit covering the cost of an urn, transportation and the cremation itself.

But within a day of the press release, Smart Cremation had disappeared from Amazon's site. A rep for HWH PR, the firm that represents Smart Cremation, says Amazon contacted the company after seeing articles about the offering.

"Amazon said, 'This is a service, not a product,'" says spokeswoman Lois Whitman. Amazon did not respond to CNNMoney's request for comment.

"We are stunned. We will be approaching Amazon again," Whitman said. "But a few other big-box retailers have said they want to sell our services online."

Maybe Costco will offer a 10-pack?


By Julianne Pepitone @CNNMoneyTech - Last updated December 15 2011: 12:46 PM ET
Join the Conversation
What not to buy before Christmas

From cashmere to comforters, the discounts may seem good now, but just wait until the holidays are over.

Most Popular
 
 
 
 
 

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.