Message to Wal-Mart...I can do the math

[monkeyboy]

I go to walmart for the ladies

 

[cm8]

I go to walmart for the ladies

 

[amberg@eastlink.ca]

to the op, just a thought, as i am sadly a former walmart slave....lol it could be that either the single cans were on competition with a local store or on rollback. when these happen, the rollback sent from home office, or comp set by a mgr, it doesnt take into account the packs of items. often times it would of been a good buy before, but isnt now. also a lot of the time the packs are a "go" item and are sent in for a flyer, or a display, or a company promo. but as a former cashier/dept mgr, minion of the masses i always do my math before i buy anything. you just never know!

 

[MrsPete]

Hmmm...let me think about that for a minute...Why in the world would I spend $0.81 per can, when I can spend $0.70. Hmmmm...let me think about that for a minute...

Yeah, I frequently find things like that. The thing is, you don't even have to do the math for yourself -- it's right there on the shelf below the products. You can see at a glance whether the small box or the large multi-pack is cheaper per ounce!

Walmart isn't always the cheapest place to shop, like many people claim.

I can buy food at non-grocery store places cheaper: the salvage store, the bread outlet, etc. I'm loving that summer is here, and I can get a great variety of delicious vegetables inexpensively. We've been enjoying wonderful things like homegrown tomatoes with fresh basil, salt-roasted small potatoes, and Gold Ball squash every night! And for less than the grocery store prices.

BUT if you're comparing ONLY grocery stores, I spend less at Walmart than I do at Food Lion, Harris Teeter, or Target. And I have the price book and grocery receipts to prove it. However, I can't say that my comparisons are completely bias-free: I tend to go to Walmart when I need to do a big stock-up trip, and I tend to buy large packages of staples there; for example, if I want something very basic like a 5-lb bag of pinto beans, Walmart is always cheaper than the other grocery stores. And I can never beat Walmart's price on the flat of 2 1/2 dozen eggs. On the other hand, I only tend to go to Harris Teeter when I want some type of special produce (Walmart's produce is definitely not as good) or when they have a great sale on a specific item. And when I go to Harris Teeter I tend to stock up on some of the unique things I like but can't get at other places. I shop at a variety of stores, and each one has its strong points.

If you really care about spending as little as possible, I strongly suggest making a price book as described in first edition of The Tightwad Gazette. I promise, it's worth the effort!

The conductor punched two round-trip tickets for a young couple and the charge was $5.00. He then came over to us and asked how many tickets and if we were going round-trip. There were four of us, but he said there was no charge for our grandson (under 24 months), so the cost would be $12.50. I'm thinking, wait a minute, you just charged $5.00 for two people, but you're charging us $12.50 for three?

Makes me think about a time I went to the gas station, and the attendant had just changed the gas prices -- and had left off the dollar figure. It was supposed to be something like $1.29 (this wasn't yesterday), and instead she'd entered .29 into the gas pump. I didn't realize this 'til after I'd started pumping gas. So when I went in to pay (this was when pay-at-the-pump wasn't everywhere), they knew how much the gas should've cost, and they knew how many gallons I'd bought . . . but they couldn't figure out how much I owed. I didn't help. It's not my job to teach basic multiplication to convenience store clerks. Finally they just said, "How about you pay $3?" I wish I'd had a bigger tank.

My grandparents ran a small country grocery store for years. Grandma was trying to sell this big plastic container full of little cans of potted meat. (I know, YUCK, right?) She put up a big sign "Potted Meat .10 per can". Not one can sold all day. The next day she changed the sign "Potted Meat 5 cans for 1.00". By the end of the day all the cans were gone. True story.

I've seen that kind of deal plenty of times! One week Kraft Mac&Cheese'll be on sale .59/box . . . and the next week it'll be 10 boxes for $10 . . . and people'll fill their carts to get that $10 special!

Two five pound bags of sugar have been cheaper than one 10 pound bag at Walmart for years. Now either one is cheaper than the same bag at any other place in town; but I buy it 5 pounds at a time and save about 1.00 per 10 lbs.

I've also seen two 1/2 gallons of milk cost less than one full gallon.

 

[sorcerormickey]

Walmart isn't always the cheapest place to shop, like many people claim.

I COULD NOT AGREE MORE!! I am sooo tired of hearing how 'cheap' WM is! I rarely go into a WM, but the few things I look at, I see higher prices! Especially toys.

My BF was at work the other day and people were talking about WM in the break room. BF chimed in that WM was more expensive than SuperTarget and we do most of our shopping at Target (Publix too). He said someone actually said to him, "Wow, you must be rich - I could never afford Target. Only WalMart."

 

[luvsJack]

Walmart being the cheapest must be depending on the area you live in. Here we have SaveRite, Winn-Dixie (those two are a part of the same company), Ramey's and Corner Market. Overall, Walmart is cheaper. Now, meat is better at Ramey's and I do buy meat there when it is on sale. For everything else, there may be an item or two that is cheaper at another store; but the total of my weekly grocery bill will always be cheaper at WalMart. I do ad-match but many times have to be careful that WalMart hasn't dipped their price down below the ad.

Our Target is way too high to even consider buying food items there. A jar of baby food is 50% more at Target than at Walmart!!

 

[mill4023]

Walmart being the cheapest must be depending on the area you live in. Here we have SaveRite, Winn-Dixie (those two are a part of the same company), Ramey's and Corner Market. Overall, Walmart is cheaper. Now, meat is better at Ramey's and I do buy meat there when it is on sale. For everything else, there may be an item or two that is cheaper at another store; but the total of my weekly grocery bill will always be cheaper at WalMart. I do ad-match but many times have to be careful that WalMart hasn't dipped their price down below the ad.

Our Target is way too high to even consider buying food items there. A jar of baby food is 50% more at Target than at Walmart!!

Yeah, it makes me wonder what other stores people have in their areas.
We have Harris Teeter, Lowes Foods, and Bi-Lo.
Those stores have better sales than Walmart, including a lot of buy one get one items (or even buy 2 get 3 sometimes).
But for items that are not on sale, Walmart is substantially cheaper than all the others.

 

[MrsPete]

But for items that are not on sale, Walmart is substantially cheaper than all the others.

Now that's true. As a general rule of thumb, other stores' SALE PRICES may beat Walmart, and Walmart essentially doesn't run sales. But that's why a price book is a valuable tool -- so you're looking at actual data for the stores available in your area, not just generalizing about what appears to be true.

 

[bicker]

I think the issue with Wal-Mart and "cheapness" is not a matter of them necessarily being the one-and-only absolutely cheapest for everything always, but rather that Wal-Mart not only leads the charge towards cheapness, but essentially sets (read: lowers) the standards for product quality by undercutting the profitability of offering objectively higher-quality products, since Wal-Mart and its ilk have so thoroughly changed the way consumers look at offerings (i.e., changing the perspective of so many consumers from a balance between low price and high quality that perhaps was more tilted toward high quality to one that is more tilted toward low prices).

Wal-Mart isn't alone, though. They're just the enabler for a certain set of products. There's another company that probably very few people know of, called Funai. They're basically the "Wal-Mart of..." consumer electronics. They're perhaps singlehandedly responsible for the proliferation of LCD televisions and DVD players that shall last five years instead of ten years, for example. They sell products under a myriad of brand names (Sylvania, Emerson, Magnavox, Philips, and Symphonic), so it is hard to see how much this proliferation is the responsibilty of one company.

This phenomenon is not limited to products, though. If you think about it, you see that the same thing has happened with regard to travel agencies. I remember our honeymoon, and the service we received from the travel agent we used. The subsequent ascendancy of what are essential automated travel agencies, where there is minimal direct human-to-human contact, and your arrangements aren't really the responsibility of an individual but are rather managed by a machine, with different people helping you whenever you need help, has radically affected the service provided. You can still get the superior service (just like you can still get great products in the categories that Wal-Mart offers products in), but the ascendancy of the low-cost providers has a very substantial impact on the sector, typically making superior products/services substantially higher in price, and sometimes more difficult to obtain.

A good example of the latter can be seen in DVRs. Most folks are okay with the "Wal-Mart quality" cable-compatible DVRs that they can lease from their cable company. Despite initial appearances, they're actually pretty inexpensive, with no up-front cost and a monthly fee of only $15-$20 per month. Compare that to what you would pay up-front for a premium DVR. At a minimum, you're looking at two or three hundred dollars up-front, and then $17.50-$22.50 per month in fees split between the DVR provider and cable company (the latter usually embedded in some other fee); or $450-$800 up-front and still about $2.50 per month to the cable company (again, usually embedded in some other fee) to the cable company. However, the existence and popularity of the "Wal-Mart quality" cable-compatible DVRs that subscribers can lease from their cable company have essentially undercut the ability to make profit on premium DVRs, even at the pricing I've outlined. TiVo has spent ten years losing money, because of how much consumers undercut the profitability of quality products by their acceptance and preference for Wal-Mart quality at Wal-Mart pricing.

 

[landshark]

I've found that where one place is cheaper for one item, another will be higher for that same item. No single store seems to be consistently cheaper than another. Sales and customer loyalty programs will alter these prices across the board, too.

I don't have the time/ability/desire to run to Jewel, Walmart, Target, Petco, Trader Joe's and/or the local grocery store down the street to find the best deal on what I need to get. Being in the city, these stores aren't necessarily even close to me anyway and are pretty well spread out from one another. The whole point of going to a Walmart, for example, is the convenience of having everything you need under one roof. But if the cat litter I use is $1 cheaper at Target (which it is) and I'm getting everything else I need at Walmart, I'm not making a special trip to Target. If anything that dollar just gets spent on gas to get there.

Given the time it takes to be a conscious consumer and try to get through a grocery store, I almost wonder if all the choices we have are a blessing or a curse.

 

[etoiles]

I have also noticed this about Walmart.

Shout at walmart was 1.98 for a bottle or 4.28 for a double size refill. Why buy the refill when you can get the same amount for 28 cents less??

Also, it is more $$$$ at our Walmart than other stores for most items, so it doesn't really matter anyway. In addition, our Walmart regularly only has 2 or 3 cashiers during a highly busy time making huge waiting lines and time is money!

I have tried to avoid our Walmart as best I could unless I had a very specific item I knew would cost less there.

 

[MrsPete]

but rather that Wal-Mart not only leads the charge towards cheapness . . . A good example of the latter can be seen in DVRs. Most folks are okay with the "Wal-Mart quality" cable-compatible DVRs that they can lease from their cable company . . . TiVo has spent ten years losing money, because of how much consumers undercut the profitability of quality products by their acceptance and preference for Wal-Mart quality at Wal-Mart pricing.

I hear where you're coming from, and you're absolutely right to say tht the existance of a cheaper product (often lesser quality) does undercut the premium item.

However, you also have to factor in people's priorities. To borrow from your DVR example, I'm sure that TiVo is much nicer -- perhaps it's fair to call them the Cadillac of DVRs. But does that mean everyone cares enough about that particular service to pay the Cadillac price? Plenty of people (like me) don't DVR at all and don't care to do so. In fact, the Walmart DVR price looks pretty high to me, simply because it's a service that doesn't interest me.

Another example: I make wedding cakes. I make elaborate, custom-designed, baked-from-scratch cakes. I deliver them to the wedding site, set them up myself and "dress the table". I serve the cakes (which, because of my internal supports and secret interior cuts, do not have to be disassembled to be served), clean up at the end, and leave the customer with a box of wrapped leftover cake. Simply put, my cakes are the best available in this area, and they are always the hit of the reception. People tell me that guests still talk about their cakes months and even years later. As you can guess, I charge a pretty penny for this premium cake.

I'd imagine that the vast majority of brides would recognize that my cakes are vastly superior to a box-mix cake baked in the Kroger deli and picked up by the groom's brother. BUT knowing that my cakes are better doesn't mean that every bride's willing to pay for one of my cakes. Plenty of people are perfectly happy to have a grocery-store made cake -- for some of them, if my cake were the only thing available, they'd slap a homemade sheet cake down on the table and call it done. In their minds, it's just not a big part of the wedding. They really don't care. It's not their priority. (And I don't really care -- I don't want my cake business to be big; that'd feel too much like work for me.)

I've found that where one place is cheaper for one item, another will be higher for that same item. No single store seems to be consistently cheaper than another. Sales and customer loyalty programs will alter these prices across the board, too.

I don't have the time/ability/desire to run to Jewel, Walmart, Target, Petco, Trader Joe's and/or the local grocery store down the street to find the best deal on what I need to get. Being in the city, these stores aren't necessarily even close to me anyway and are pretty well spread out from one another. The whole point of going to a Walmart, for example, is the convenience of having everything you need under one roof. But if the cat litter I use is $1 cheaper at Target (which it is) and I'm getting everything else I need at Walmart, I'm not making a special trip to Target. If anything that dollar just gets spent on gas to get there.

Given the time it takes to be a conscious consumer and try to get through a grocery store, I almost wonder if all the choices we have are a blessing or a curse.

And that's why a price book is such a genius idea. If you start keeping records of what's available in your area, you'll start to see patterns: You'll know which sales aren't really sales at all. You'll see that the expensive grocery store's chicken goes on a fantastic price about every two months . . . so you can anticipate it and plan to fill your freezer. You'll know the rock bottom price of your favorite brand of peanut butter with certainty. And, to borrow from your example, you'll know that the kitty litter is cheaper at Target, so when you go there this week you'll get enough to last several weeks . . . and that means you'll BOTH save the $1 AND not have to make a special trip next week.

A price book takes about six months to really take shape, but I promise you that it's worth the work. Making a price book, searching out non-grocery store options, and skimping on beverages are -- by far -- the best ways to save on groceries.

 

[live4christp1]

Have to watch out for this in the produce too. Noticed recently that a small container of blueberries was exactly the same price as the larger container of blueberries......now why pay the same $$ to get less?

 

[bicker]

but rather that Wal-Mart not only leads the charge towards cheapness . . . A good example of the latter can be seen in DVRs. Most folks are okay with the "Wal-Mart quality" cable-compatible DVRs that they can lease from their cable company . . . TiVo has spent ten years losing money, because of how much consumers undercut the profitability of quality products by their acceptance and preference for Wal-Mart quality at Wal-Mart pricing.

I hear where you're coming from, and you're absolutely right to say tht the existance of a cheaper product (often lesser quality) does undercut the premium item. However, you also have to factor in people's priorities. To borrow from your DVR example, I'm sure that TiVo is much nicer -- perhaps it's fair to call them the Cadillac of DVRs. But does that mean everyone cares enough about that particular service to pay the Cadillac price? Plenty of people (like me) don't DVR at all and don't care to do so. In fact, the Walmart DVR price looks pretty high to me, simply because it's a service that doesn't interest me.

No question about any of that. I'm sure that loads of folks really don't care about how nice Walt Disney World is, and would be happier if it was half the price and a quarter the quality, because the money is more important than the vacation experience to that person.

I think, though, that people don't realize that their own priorities may change, so by essentially pushing producers to produce (literally) cheap crap, folks may end up harming themselves, down the line, when they finally decide that the now-gone premium offering is no longer available.

Indeed, in some ways, this has happened at WDW, at least with respect to dining, which hit a peak in the 1990s and has been descending in this manner. The Dining Plan is the mechanism often blamed for this.