Let's Go Shooping at Walmart

When I feel down and bad about myself, I go to Walmart. I leave thinkin" My life ain't half bad!"

DukeOfUndersteer wrote: When I feel down and bad about myself, I go to Walmart. I leave thinkin" My life ain't half bad!"

so its like the county fair?

I don't suggest that I have all the answers, but I am not sure I get the hate towards WalMart as a business. Can't little businesses offer a combination of service, convenience and value that makes their product worth purchasing as a reasonable alternative to WalMart?

Because of their incredible buying power, they can sell products at prices much below what a normal retailer pays. The percentage of buyers that will pay more for a virtually identical product, just because you are a local vendor, is too low to support most businesses. Historically, when WalMart comes into a market, many small stores fold. They are tough to compete with.

I think people (and by people I mean me) hate WalMart because it was started by Sam Walton as a very pro America type enterprise, Red, White & Blue and the flag were integral components of their 'branding'. Now probably 95% of what Wal Mart sells is made in China, partly because they forced manufacturers, that used to produce those products in the US, there in order to keep prices low. I guess if Wal Mart had not done it, some other large retailer would have, but it still gives me a reason to hate Wal Mart. There will always be winners and losers in the 'new world economy'.

From an article I read today:

Retail consulting firm Customer Growth Partners compared 35 brand-name items — 22 common grocery staples; 10 general merchandise products; 3 health and beauty items — sold at Walmarts and Targets in New York, Indiana and North Carolina.

The result? The prices at Target ($269.13) were around two dollars cheaper than they were at Walmart ($271.07).

Otto Maddox wrote: I don't suggest that I have all the answers, but I am not sure I get the hate towards WalMart as a business. Can't little businesses offer a combination of service, convenience and value that makes their product worth purchasing as a reasonable alternative to WalMart?

Over and over, town after town, people chose wallyworld over the local offerings. I'm sure in some cases it was a choice of price over quality. But there were plenty of instances of little businesses that had a long run of a captive audience - they didn't bother trying to be competitive or provide quality service and eventually the market did the talking. Given a choice, a crap-load of people will, and have, chosen price over quality. It's pretty much a race to the bottom, but it does keep things in line and if the market is big enough there will be enough people who opt for quality first to operate a profitable businesses. There's also the psychological side of it - affordable luxury - biggest bang for a buck....

In reply to cwh:

Yeah, but there is a good market for people that don't want cheap Chinese crap. You just have to adjust to the marketplace.

Best Buy drove out a lot of stores that were selling average electronics at highly inflated prices. Same with Home Depot and Lowes for home improvement stuff. I used to loathe going to my local Ace Hardware and paying ridiculous prices when there was no alternative.

In reply to oldtin:

Good points. Although Target seems to be doing really well by catering to all the suburbanites that hate WalMart. Is that really any better? It doesn't help the small business owner.

Target isn't really much different than WalMart - they selected a different niche, but yeah, same kind of approach. I work a few gigs - a lot with a private hospital. Talk about opposites. About the only conversations there are surrounding quality and the patient (customer) experience. BTW, they are insanely profitable from focusing on the service aspect. Perhaps that's the big disconnect in playing with other people's money.

The big problem is volume. Big box stores can push WAAAAY more product out the door, and afford to take a bigger cut on profit as a result. If you're the little guy and you only move a dozen washers a month, you need to make more profit than BB/Lowesdepot. While they may only have say, 400% more space to heat/cool/employ/etc, they're moving 1000x more product. And if the guy at the top wants a new Bentley, they're going to force out whoever they have to.

Costco has managed to sell quality products at low prices. Some products are also made in China, but not a majority. They also pay their employees well, treat them well, and offer excellent benefits.
It's more than just selling cheaper priced products, it's about taking care of your customers, community, and employees at the same level.

Walmart sells Chinese products, pays employees at a sub par level, abuses workers, and hurts local businesses. But that's Capitalism...right?

Full disclosure- My wife has worked for Costco wholesale for 13 years and we are completely biased towards Wallyworld. The benefits she gets makes raising a family possible. Costco does everything it can to seperate itself from anything WalMart.

In reply to Cone_Junky:

I've not been to Costco. I go to Sam's. I am willing to let you change my allegiance as my Sam's membership expires in four days. Why should I shop at Costco?

Reasons other than what I mentioned? Quality products, excellent service, great prices, they use local vendors when possible, and pay their employees well. Also, if you shop there regularly the Executive Membership literally pays for itself (2% back on all purchases). Also the President/CEO personally capped his salary at something like $300K. There isn't as huge of a gap between corporate/management/employee wages like most corporations.

I would imagine one shopping trip at Costco would be all you need to see why it's better. Just need to watch out for idiots who block the aisles with their carts so they can wait in line for a nibble of sample food.

Otto Maddox wrote: I am not sure I get the hate towards WalMart as a business.

People love to hate for all kinds of stupid reasons, but judging from some of the responses, a lot like to have somebody to look down on. I guess it makes them feel better about themselves for some reason.

It's business. It's the capitalist system in action. Free market people who hate walmart because they put small shops out of business are just confused. If you don't like it, don't go there. I personally love walmart. Our small population country had no competition in a lot of the markets that they service. Now there's competition, selection, and far better pricing.

I only make so much money. I choose wisely where it goes, and paying more for something to keep somebody artificially in business amounts only to an extra tax, IMO

Costco:

The problem with Costco is the $50 a year membership. Unless you shop there a lot, it is going to be hard to make that $50 savings, and that is just breaking even.

Otto Maddox wrote: Best Buy drove out a lot of stores that were selling average electronics at highly inflated prices. Same with Home Depot and Lowes for home improvement stuff. I used to loathe going to my local Ace Hardware and paying ridiculous prices when there was no alternative.

IMHO, Best Buy doesn't support your argument........they are WAY overpriced on things. They may have good discounting on the large ticket items when they go on sale, but the pricing on items like cables, computer peripherals, etc. are really quite unbelievable. I have a Best Buy less than 10 minutes away from me -- I'll drive almost an hour to get to a Fry's to get the same item for less than half price.

I needed an HDMI cable -- cheapest one @ Best Buy was over $40. Fry's.........$9.

Oh yeah -- and the local hardware store is very much my friend when I need nuts and bolts for the car projects.........HD and Lowes notsomuch.....

Target has prices that are the same or better, higher quality products (store brand foods, etc.), and they're much better about opening extra checkout lines when necessary. I am flabbergasted any time I spend less than ten minutes in line at Wal-Mart. I go to Wal-Mart when everything else is closed.

In reply to orphancars:

monoprice.com is even better if you know what you need ahead of time ;)

Yeah, I don't get Best Buy. Went in there looking for a microwave to replace one that blew up. Guy told me he can get me one in about a week and deliver it for me. Then he wants my life history. Really? You can't just sell me a microwave tonight?

I went to Lowe's. Price was as good or cheaper. I took one home with me.

An interesting story about a small store succeeding. We have a smallish local hardware store, MacDonalds. I have never gone in there and not found what I wanted, even car parts. Needed 12" of 14 ga wire to finish off changing an outlet- no problem, 15 cents. Needed oil for my hydraulic jack- no problem. Not only do they carry outright weird stuff, all the staff knows where stuff is. Excellent customer service. Maybe 10% higher than Home Depot, but the level of service and expertise more than make up for it. Fun place to just walk around, too.

Conquest351 wrote: Unfortunately Wal-Mart is all we have in my small town. At least I get some amusement from the people I see in there.

if you have a Wal Mart, you aren't in a small town. i live 35 miles from the nearest Wal Mart, Target, Home Depot, or whatever.. the closest Best buy is 65 miles away.

even given that, most everyone from my town makes the trek to the bigger towns that do have that stuff- a friend of mine works at the local mom-and-pop hardware store, and he told me that his boss (the owner) even makes the drive to Home Depot or Menards if he needs building materials or if he needs to restock some hardware.. you hardly ever see anyone pushing a full grocery cart around in the local grocery store, despite prices that are right inline with or lower than Wal Mart..

1988RedT2 wrote: Wal-Mart has put a lot of hard-working, small entrepreneurs and family businesses out of business. I will avoid Wal-Mart like the plague, and I will gladly pay more to do so. A pox on them!

Interesting to note, I was recently reading an article in the Economist of how 120 mom and pop shops in Japan aligned themselves to better receive competitive wholesale prices from food distributors. They also leveraged their size so the distribution company ALSO ran data analysis on what was selling and what wasn't. Now, they have the food their customers want AND they can undercut the "big name" grocers.

Now if that ain't the entrepreneurial spirit, I don't know what is!

I can hardly believe this picture was taken in my local Walmart.

On Costco vs. Sams club:

Costco wins every time. Not even a contest, its just better. Cleaner, better products, etc. etc.