Am I the Only One Who Likes Walmart?

[Disney Ella]

I have been in a few Walmarts in less populated areas that were clean and well-stocked, and had friendly, helpful employees. That is not the case around here and I find that some very scary-looking shoppers manage to find their way to my local Walmart - the kind of people I don't seem to see at Target, Sears or Kohls.

 

[bookgirl]

I like walmart. I worked there in Grad school. Every complaint I have ever seen written about WM, I've seen at Target (where I worked as a undergrad). Crappy pay, no benefits, non-american made products, bored/cranky employees, not enough checkers, confusing aisles, crowded shopping hours/days, shopping carts all over the parking lot. Same problems both places. Plus since walmart has started selling healtier products and cleaned up thier stores it's even less difference between the two.


I shop at both, I like Targets produce and meat better and they have some brands of natural foods that I can get cheaper than at the natural food market. Other than that I shop 80% of the time at Walmart. Plus I am busy and I like one stop shopping.

I've lived in rural areas and city and the mom and pop's/small speciality stores would charge a fortune (even back in the eighties before WM took over the retail world), I used to have to wait for a trip to walmart to even be able to afford somethings, now that I can afford to shop where I want, I still hit walmart.

 

[Carly_Roach]

My family does not shop at Walmart by choice.

My DH works in the grocery industry so we have insider knowledge on how Walmart operates. Walmart is a corporate bully. It is such a large company that it can do basically whatever it wants. For example if a grocery chain wants to sell Frito Lay chips they will negociate with Frito Lay and buy the chips for let's say $1.00 a bag. Walmart doesn't negociate - they go to Frito Lay and say we'll pay $.40 a bag - take it or leave it and because Walmart is so huge a lot of vendors take it.

Then Walmart sells their products at a discount but they are still making more of a profit margin than other retailers because of what they got the items for.

Since Super Walmarts have moved into Florida both Winn Dixie and Albertsons have been basically put out of business. It's very sad and I will not support it.

With all the profit Walmart is making they can afford to keep their stores cleaner, better staffed and they can pay their employees better but they don't. Where is all that profit going?

My sister was in the same industry and said the same thing about Wal-Mart's bully tactics. Hopefully American companies Like Frito-Lay North America will start saying, "Thanks but no thanks" to putting their products on Wal-Mart's shelves and maybe then we'll get our regional grocery, hardware and department stores back.

When you're shopping Wal-Mart you're supporting China. I don't go there very often (and when I do it's just for a sale). I just hate Wal-Mart for all the reasons (rightly or wrongly) that Bicker mentioned.

 

[OctMtnWoods]

I like Walmart. In our area, the stores are all newer and in areas severly lacking any other stores or grocery stores. They didn't move into towns that had Target or grocery stores. They are more plentiful than Target which are few & far between. I've never heard of a SuperTarget in New England so I've never seen one. Target here doesn't carry much for food. Walmart is much closer and prices are lower than Target. I've read that is not true for all parts of the country.

Its 16 miles round trip to nearest grocery store. Over 25 miles round trip to Target. Only 4 miles round trip for Walmart. It will be expanding to a SuperWalmart soon which is great because this area really needs a grocery store. Right now, they carry enough food that its where I stop first. Pet food for sure. Paper products, HBA & cleaners. THEN I head to the grocery store. Saves me lots of money.

I've been in about 10 Walmarts in our state. Only 1 made me never want to return. It is located in an older building of a store that went out of business. Cramped. Gross. And I think the employees felt it.

Every where else has been new or recently redone. Clean & bright.

When we moved to this town 16 yrs ago, there was NOTHING. Just a few liquor stores. A couple of local pizza joints. That's it. Walmart arrived first. A huge taxpayer. Then we got McD and Dunkin Donuts. Then we were able to get sewer installed on our main roads. Now we even have Home Depot.

Even with Walmarts announcement of becoming a SuperWalmart later this year, another grocery chain has announced they will build a store in our town. From a town that had NOTHING, we will now have 2 places to buy food now. WOOHOO!!!!
Can't think of any smaller stores that suffered from Walmart moving into town either. There was nothing here or in the area to suffer to begin with.

I never encounter long lines either. Usually 1 or 2 people in line before me.

 

[Uuaww]

10 minute check out times? rude employees? clean stores? well stocked?
YOU GUYS IN THE STATES DO NOT KNOW HOW LUCKY YOU ARE!

Avg. checkout time here is 20 minutes, I have actually had checkers close with my items on the belt, or leave mid checkout to go talk to someone they saw for 5 minutes. Trying to find someone to thelp you? not gonna happen here.
Aisle spill? clean it tomorrow.
Items in stock? If it is there today, buy it today, b/c it won't be there tomorrow. (I haven't seen blueberry waffles in 3 months)
Milk? $6 for a half-gallon.

 

[robinb]

Obviously, you are not the only one otherwise they would not still be in business. I don't shop at Wal*Mart here at home because I do not support their employment policies or the way that they muscle out local businesses with their pricing. I shop/support other places instead.

I do make exceptions when I travel. The last Wal*Mart I visited was on Maui .

 

[BabyPiglet]

I live in Arkansas, so it's all about Walmart down here. We have 5 Super Walmart in my small town of 80,000 and a few smaller nearby towns. We also have a neighborhood market.

It's fine. It's...Walmart. I like it. The stores around here are fairly new or recently remodeled, huge, clean, organized, etc. I've had experiences with rude workers, but that's pretty much everywhere.

There's really no place else to shop. We just got a Target last year, and it's not doing so well. The people around here love Walmart too much.

 

[SelfEmployedDebtFree]

Count me in as someone who HATES Walmart. All you need to do is watch the movie "The high cost of Low Prices". You'll see just a little of why I hate corporate, China selling Walmart so much.
Their business practices more resemble the Mafia than a reputable business.

 

[wvjules]

When you're shopping Wal-Mart you're supporting China. I don't go there very often (and when I do it's just for a sale). I just hate Wal-Mart for all the reasons (rightly or wrongly) that Bicker mentioned.

How about if you're shopping wal-mart you are supporting the employees that work there. Unemployment in some towns would be much worse if it weren't for Wal-mart.

 

[DawnCt1]

I'm glad you pointed this out. It seems the people in the "love walmart" category all say they love the prices and they've never had customer service/cleanliness issues.

Well, I am in the "refuse to shop at Walmart" camp, and I've also never had customer service/cleanliness issues. My issues are among those you pointed out in the rest of your reply, as well as others.

Walmart has provided entry level jobs, and has made consumer goods affordable and available from those who could not have afforded to buy from "mom and pop" shops. Macy's, Penney, Kohl's, Target, etc are all chain stores, but they never get the slings and arrows that Walmart does. Yet, it was Walmart that loaded up their trucks and drove to New Orleans after Katrina. It was Walmart that opened up the doors of their stores and people not only took what they needed, they took what they could never use. If one is going to refuse to shop at Walmart, they should eschew the all of the other chain stores as well.

 

[TheZue]

I personally try to buy as local as possible. One because my family works retail, if the profits stay here and increase the wealth here we'll do better so it's totally selfish. And also with food I don't want food that's been shipped from around the planet and our walmart carries absolutely no fresh food vs our locally owned grocery stores that carry milk produced within an hour, veggies grown within 2, and the meat is all Canadian. It's not more expensive for me to get fresh local food from a local grocery chain so I see absolutely no point in going to walmart and getting canned food from across the planet and having the profits exported.

The other problem I have is the clothing, I got some really cheap clothes there before christmas and I hadn't bought before. I really liked the first one so I went back and got two more. Of course three days after I went and got a couple more the first one got a hole, within a couple weeks the other two did too. So the shirts were $10 each but only lasted a month each. When I go and get good quality clothes at a department store I pay around $30 but the shirts will last a year, so Walmart ends up more expensive because I keep my clothes a long time. Although it's not the end of the world because it is nice to have some crappy shirts to clean the house in, nothing worse than ruining a decent shirt with cleaning products. So Walmart can fill me need for disposable crappy clothes

And also with our kids, my eldest if he's getting new clothes I will go somewhere and pay a bit more because I know they'll be passed down. For my youngest he's been getting Walmart clothes because we're done and they only have to make it through one kid. Now before I get comments on how I'm totally going to give my youngest a complex, this is our plan until the youngest hits school and then they'll both be getting equal stuff. I don't think a pre-schooler is going to care he gets the discount clothes while his brother gets the brand name stuff. But again, crappy clothes for summer or a baby I'll go to Walmart but for good school clothes or clothes that have to make it through two kids I'll go to the Gap, Children's Place, or Gymboree.

Now for Toys, I will often go to Walmart. The ones my kids want are made in China anyways and the other stores that carry them have all been bought by Americans so there is no reason not to go to Walmart. This is the one area they ARE cheaper on and I'm not going to pay double somewhere else when no matter where I buy the profits will be exported anyways.

So my feelings on Walmart are sort of mixed. I don't like that they shut down stores when they look like they are going to unionize, but I am no fan of the unions for going in and pushing the employees in the first place. I'd rather shop locally, but for retail in general it's harder and harder to do that. And I don't like their clothes because they are terrible quality, but there is a place for that. Add me to the love/hate feelings on Walmart.

 

[ThunderMTexpert]

Yes.

















He he he.. just kidding, but it does seem to be more of a hassle for me than anything else in the world.. HAHA!

 

[C.Ann]

I have no problems with Walmart - clean stores; well-stocked; large variety to choose from; great prices; and pleasant, helpful employees..

On a personal level, I know several people who work for various Walmarts and are very happy with their jobs, salaries, and benefits.. One family in my old neighborhood had an infant with a life-threatening disease.. Not only did Walmart cover all of the medical expenses, but they held numerous fund raisers so the parents could travel to one of the hospitals out of state and stay there with the baby until he could come home..

For the most part, I think Walmart is doing a good service for many communities - by carrying goods at a reasonable price that some people could not otherwise afford.. I can understand people saying they prefer to support the "Mom & Pop" stores, but when people can't afford the higher prices at the "Mom & Pop" stores, it only stands to reason that they will get what they need where they can get the most for their dollar..

 

[DawnCt1]

I have no problems with Walmart - clean stores; well-stocked; large variety to choose from; great prices; and pleasant, helpful employees..

On a personal level, I know several people who work for various Walmarts and are very happy with their jobs, salaries, and benefits.. One family in my old neighborhood had an infant with a life-threatening disease.. Not only did Walmart cover all of the medical expenses, but they held numerous fund raisers so the parents could travel to one of the hospitals out of state and stay there with the baby until he could come home..

For the most part, I think Walmart is doing a good service for many communities - by carrying goods at a reasonable price that some people could not otherwise afford.. I can understand people saying they prefer to support the "Mom & Pop" stores, but when people can't afford the higher prices at the "Mom & Pop" stores, it only stands to reason that they will get what they need where they can get the most for their dollar..

I agree with everything you said, and I am not surprised by Walmart's generosity. When DH and I first got married back in the early 70's, we bought our first tv from a mom and pop store for $550. It was 25 inch console tv. That was a lot of money then. Today, no one would spend that much money for a 25 inch tv, thanks to stores like Walmart. It makes consumer goods affordable, as you said.

 

[Seven Seas Lagoon]

Count me in as someone who HATES Walmart. All you need to do is watch the movie "The high cost of Low Prices". You'll see just a little of why I hate corporate, China selling Walmart so much.
Their business practices more resemble the Mafia than a reputable business.

Amen!

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

I don't love or hate WalMart. I can take it or leave it. I've had good and bad experiences. I'll go there if there are things I need that I know will be cheaper there and the difference is enough to warrant passing closer alternatives. There's a Kroger, a Target, and two Ukrops (local grocery chain) closer to me than the closest WalMart.

The WalMart nearest us was the last one here to be transformed into a supercenter. Before that, it was claustrophobic with cramped and cluttered narrow aisles. Now it's more comfortable, but there's still something about the place. I don't know why, but whenever I go to WalMart ... it's like there's the expectation of a frustrating experience, and if I can get in, get what I need, and get out fast, so much the better. When I go to other places like Ukrops, Target, or Kroger, I'll take my time; WalMart is more of a "hit and run" shopping experience.

 

[CPT Tripss]

We live about 70 miles from corporate headquarters, so our store is always clean. There are two or three checkers that I avoid. I don't buy many clothes there, I can usually get better deals on better quality clothing at places like Kohls and Penneys. What clothing I do buy is underwear and socks for my men. Fruit of the Loom is pretty much the same anywhere.
All in all, I like Wal-Mart.

Don't be so sure about that. They have their own specs for certain stores . . . a little less material to save a few cents. Buy from Walmart and a name brand store and compare the two goods.

 

[HelenePA]

Don't be so sure about that. They have their own specs for certain stores . . . a little less material to save a few cents. Buy from Walmart and a name brand store and compare the two goods.

Really? I had no idea.. I really dont like walmart clothes anyway.. only thing I buy there are sweatpants because they are the only place I can find them. Well I've seen them at the Gap but like I'm gonna pay 20$ for a pair of sweatpants for my kids

 

[CPT Tripss]

Walmart has provided entry level jobs, and has made consumer goods affordable and available from those who could not have afforded to buy from "mom and pop" shops. Macy's, Penney, Kohl's, Target, etc are all chain stores, but they never get the slings and arrows that Walmart does. Yet, it was Walmart that loaded up their trucks and drove to New Orleans after Katrina. It was Walmart that opened up the doors of their stores and people not only took what they needed, they took what they could never use. If one is going to refuse to shop at Walmart, they should eschew the all of the other chain stores as well.

Ah, but you are wrong . . . without getting into the old argument, Target was castigated about its Christmas greeting (or lack thereof), they got slammed for not allowing the Salvo bell ringers (as they allow no groups to solicit) and were even "slandered" with assertions that they were French (at the time of "freedom" fries.

Walmart has to live with it's past practice of "flying the flag" over products that turned out not to be made in the USA. Walmart has to live with its obsession for cutting costs, damn the consequences. And its forcing companies to go to Chinese manufacturers - remember Snapper? You won't find that brand in Wal-Mart . . . just the disposable mowers that oare out there.

Charitable works? How about 5% to charity?

 

[SelfEmployedDebtFree]

I'd rather pay 3 times "the walmart price" for a high quality item that I can keep for many years than get it at "the lowest price" and have to replace it every year.

As far as a previous post about how Walmart sells items cheaper... That's not always true. I still shop at Mom and pops stores, and one thing I have discovered is they run sales too!!!!!! You mention ANY item and I can almost always find it for the same or cheaper at a local store. It's kinda like the mentality people have about Lowes and Home Depot. EX: I'm a plumbing business owner. I can buy quality made parts, from quality manufacturers (often here in the USA) for my company, and I can sell them off my vans (and double and even occasionally triple my money) and STILL sell them for less than Lowes sells them for!!! People have been brainwashed by corporate.

Another reason to consider that mom-n-pop store is that in order for them to stay afloat they have to get creative. They usually learn quickly that they have to sell a different style item. That's an advantage for the picky shopper. You can get some really interesting items if you hit the local boutiques and stores. You can find items that you will often LOVE rather than just like, and sometimes you can actually get them for less.

Don't get me wrong. I still hit Walmart occasionally for a little ingredient or something small, but if I can support a local store I know the profits stay in my town.

Oh, and Most of the good things Walmart does, their employees have done. The Sam Walton family does a LOT less than they could given their wealth. Most of the time it's the lower level employees, NOT the corporate overseers who have made the sacrifices for the need at hand. As far as walmart helping the community... Walmart will OFTEN set up a supercenter outside of a town if the town turns them away. The customers then do the drive to the next town, draining the town. Real community help there..
Oh and the jobs Walmart create... those same jobs were already being held at local stores, and in most cases the actual number of local jobs shrinks. Before walmart there were individual businesses creating all those jobs. As a result you had MORE jobs because each of those businesses had employees. Walmart often moves their top managers from other towns, so no local job created there.