I shop at
Walmart all the time. Unfortunately here in rural vermont our choices are limited. I could/would shop downtown if I was looking for let's say, some beads from Beadniks, a bong from the Underground, some hemp clothing from the hemp clothing store, or some very expensive (albiet not useful) blown glass from the Artisan's store, maybe I could pick up some wine at the Wine Cellar or get a tattoo. I could pay $20.00 for a pair of socks at the outdoor store. Do you get where I'm going with this? We need department stores where us working folk can afford to shop and that carries things we need.
mzrea - I hear ya. I'm not sure where in Vermont you're from, but I'm in southern VT and the nearest town is full of high end outlet stores that people from NY, MA, CT etc. flock to in droves. But there is nothing for the locals to buy in terms of practical day-to-day stuff, it's difficult.
Nearest
Walmart is in Rutland, 45 minutes away, and even though I would prefer to support local businesses, I got a little desperate and decided to see what was in
Walmart. I was pretty dissapointed by their selection, they did have some items that were much cheaper than what I would pay in my nearest town, but when I looked at the selection of pet items, food items (not much that we use - I wanted staples like big bags of King Arthur flour, dried milk and other baking stuff, but they had mostly boxes of premade stuff), etc. I don't think I'll use the gas to drive there very often. I do buy a lot of stuff of of the internet instead of locally, because it's the only way to get anything around here.
