Can Wal-Mart take over the U.S.?

[Skip Towne]

Considering that any one of their stores can make a man fabulously wealthy, what's to stop them from taking over.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by frazod

As long as the consumer isn't mom or pop, or mom and pop's landlord, or an employee of mom and pop, or the guy who owns a restaurant next to mom and pop who loses walk-up business because mom and pop go out of business, and so on, and so on.

But they can all find minimum wage/no benefit jobs at Walmart, right?

And when Walmart succeeds in running EVERYBODY else out of business, do you really think the prices will continue to stay low?

Our town got a WMSC 2 years ago. Our town square is BUSIER THAN IT'S EVERY BEEN!

Why?

Because the local HW store, the shoe store, and the like got replaced with a health food market, an exercise gym, a Chinese restaurant, a coffee shop...you get the drift.

Wal-Mart doesn't KILL small town business. It forces them to SPECIALIZE. Why the hell would I want to pay $12 for a hammer just so I can say I bought it from my local Joe HW guy?

[Skip Towne]

Originally Posted by Mile High Mania

True, but you can say that about any large mall destroying "mom and pop" stores. Same for Home Depot and Lowes. It happens. Sucks for the companies they knock out of business, but the consumer still wins.

No, the consumer does not always win. Wal-Mart put stores in Nowata, Ok and Pawhuska, Ok and ran them for several years....long enough to run off all the smaller stores. Then they built a SC in Bartlesville, 20 miles from both towns and closed the smaller town stores. Now the residents of both towns must drive 20 miles to shop.

[Ultra Peanut]

Wal-Mart is the ****ing devil.

[Saulbadguy]

Originally Posted by ENDelt260

I don't believe they do...

The grocery store nearest me does, tho. Sometimes those things can be a bigger pain in the ass than they are convenience, tho. If you're just buying one or two things, they're awesome... but, if you're buying a whole week's worth of groceries... the scanner isn't always reliable... then every once in awhile the whole machine decides it needs the intervention of an employee for some mystery reason... and, of course, if you're buying booze, you gotta wait for the dude to come over and card ya.

I'm a single guy like you. I always manage to fit a couple weeks worth of groceries in 2 bags. Also, with larger items they allow "skip bagging" up to 4 times, until a wal mart drone comes to verify you are actually buying the items.

Also, I would never buy booze at Wal-Mart here in Kansas.

[Saulbadguy]

Originally Posted by frazod

Walmart sucks ass. They destroy small town businesses/economies as effectively as bombs. Go to the downtown area of any small town within 30 miles of one of those fucking things and try to find an open business. Good luck.

Where I live, the local Walmart is a piece of shit anyway - it's one of the older ones, is cramped, dirty and packed with scumbags. I've only set foot inside it once and will never go back. Target is much better, and certainly less evil.

Of course, I'm fortunate that I live in major metropolitan area and have the option to say no to the Beast.

They destroy small town businesses while offering more jobs than the small businesses offer.

[Skip Towne]

Originally Posted by Saulbadguy

I'm a single guy like you. I always manage to fit a couple weeks worth of groceries in 2 bags. Also, with larger items they allow "skip bagging" up to 4 times, until a wal mart drone comes to verify you are actually buying the items.

Also, I would never buy booze at Wal-Mart here in Kansas.

Wal mart drone

[Cannibal]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

It's interesting, though, that Wal-Mart doesn't provide benefits to most of their employees. A lack of health coverage in particular then leads many Wal-Mart employees to go to public hospitals for care that they can't pay for, which is then funded out of tax dollars. Wal-Mart is therefore subsidized to some extent by the taxpayer so they can offer those low prices.

This is true for all employers that don't offer health care, but Wal-Mart is so big that it adds up to enormous amounts of money.

I didn't know that, and if true that REALLY pisses me off!!!!

[Cannibal]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

Granted, I don't shop at Wal-Mart anyway (too dirty, too many strange, smelly people), but I would NEVER buy produce there. Seinfeld:\ Have you seen this crap? I mean, have you SEEN it? /:Seinfeld. I can't believe anyone would shop in their meat department either. Basically, I get all of my groceries at the mom and pop place down the street and if I need something else, I go to Target (all the way across town).

I never buy groceries at Wal-Mart either, we go to Dillons for groceries. But my wife and I have recently started a boycott of Wal-Mart as well. We also drive out of our way to go to Target.

[Saulbadguy]

The Target here isn't a Super Target. I wish it was, so I wouldn't have to drive to Wal-Mart. I have no problem with Wal-Mart other than its crowded. And its not crowded with what you would call "normal" people, either.

I'm not a thin, trim man by any means, but I hate it when Big Bertha wheels by in her squeaky cart loaded with ding dongs and ho ho's, with her litter of screaming children running around tearing up the place. I usually turn around my cart and head full speed to the health food section, where I know I will be left alone.

[Saulbadguy]

I also find it kind of ironic we have a Target distribution center here, but no Super Target. I really really wish we had one. The regular Target is within walking distance of my home.

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by Saulbadguy

The Target here isn't a Super Target. I wish it was, so I wouldn't have to drive to Wal-Mart. I have no problem with Wal-Mart other than its crowded. And its not crowded with what you would call "normal" people, either.

I'm not a thin, trim man by any means, but I hate it when Big Bertha wheels by in her squeaky cart loaded with ding dongs and ho ho's, with her little of screaming children running around tearing up the place. I usually turn around my cart and head full speed to the health food section, where I know I will be left alone.

hahaha..hilarious! BTW, whats with the proliferation of portly people driving around stores in those go-kart things these days?? Everywhere i turn i run into one it seems? I dont remember them when i was a kid??

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Cannibal

I didn't know that, and if true that REALLY pisses me off!!!!

I was just in a meeting yesterday where a client discussed a study of it. It's true.

[Saulbadguy]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

hahaha..hilarious! BTW, whats with the proliferation of portly people driving around stores in those go-kart things these days?? Everywhere i turn i run into one it seems? I dont remember them when i was a kid??

They had those when I was a kid. I always wanted to ride them, but my mom would never let me. I didn't understand why. Now I do.

I applaud Wal-Mart (the one here) for having alot of those available, and in good shape.

[Cannibal]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I was just in a meeting yesterday where a client discussed a study of it. It's true.

I guess that even though I go out of my way to keep my money out of the Wal-Mart coffers, I am still giving them money via indirect means through the government.

The media needs to be covering this IMO.

[Calcountry]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Our town got a WMSC 2 years ago. Our town square is BUSIER THAN IT'S EVERY BEEN!

Why?

Because the local HW store, the shoe store, and the like got replaced with a health food market, an exercise gym, a Chinese restaurant, a coffee shop...you get the drift.

Wal-Mart doesn't KILL small town business. It forces them to SPECIALIZE. Why the hell would I want to pay $12 for a hammer just so I can say I bought it from my local Joe HW guy?

Exactly, why the fug do I care if someone mentions the words Wall Mart to me in my store.