anyone notice anything different at Wal-mart (LONG RANT)

[Farmer Brown]

I hate Wal-Mart!

They just closed down one right down the road that had been recently remodeled. It moved less than a mile away to what used to be beautiful wooded land and is now a huge ugly parking lot. Now the shopping center they were in is like a waste land. Our favorite local pizza place is in that center and have been for 20 some years. I'm afraid they'll either shut down or have to move. Have you seen the documentary about them? It's called "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Prices". Very informative.

Michelle (aka mychickensrock)

 

[HennysMom]

I watched that documentary on Wal-Mart... made me open my eyes to alot of things, but...the things is that EVERY store does that now a days, its called outsourcing. It could have easily been "JCPenney" "Macy's" "Kohl's" etc... the list goes on. Just look at the tags on your clothing and products, nothing says "Made in the USA" any longer

Not condoning Wal-Mart however - but... Target is no better. I cannot stand stores that REFUSE to return your money to you other than via a gift card to that store! If I didnt find it or buy it in your store (i.e, gift) then why would I want to SHOP there to begin with?! Example: we purchased online our daughters prom dress at Target.com - it came, was not as described - took it to the store for a refund. Store had NOTHING THERE in the form of prom dresses at all - we needed a prom dress that day (they were also late in shipping it to us!) - they refused to give me the cash back but instead offered to issue me an "in store credit"

I told the manager it was a prom dress and I need a prom dress TODAY - not an instore credit -issue it back to me in cash, just as I had paid via my debit card. He refused to do so and said it was a credit card and it would take 30 - 45 days for a refund. NO..its a debit card and it is immediate, just as it is withdrawn immediately, if you cannot issue me a cash refund - reverse the charge and reinstate the money BACK to my account immediately. He STILL refused! I got on the phone immediately right there with my bank and explained the situation to my bank - manager still standing there being very very rude and indignant to me - and at that point I told him "My bank is prepared to stop payment and reverse the charge if I say to, right now, this moment, should you refuse to issue me a credit immediately...your call mister." He crossed his arms and honest to god (little punk..he was all of maybe 20 years old!

) stood there and said "Go ahead.. I dare you...)

He thought I was bluffing....

Charges reversed... right then and there.. bank manager heard him say it... told me it was blocked from any further charges, they would not be able to dispute them as he red-flagged it, and told me to hand the phone to the "manager"....

I did...

Funny - I walked out of there not 15 minutes later with cash in hand and an apology when I started to call the district manager. I refuse to shop at Target ever again.

So.. its not just Walmart - its everywhere.

 

[Stumpy]

I've been a Walmart shopper for about 27 years. I live in a very rural area with very little shopping variety, so we make a couple of trips to per month to Walmart an hour away. Walmarts very between themselves a good bit, and not just on prices. I have to say that in the past year or two I have come closer to abandoning Walmart than ever because of the long lines and lack of cashiers, in addition to poor management which results in empty shelves.

I've tried Target and I like it okay, but I'd always have to leave there and go to Walmart for the things on my list that Target doesn't carry.

 

[Verboten]

Quote:
That sounded familiar to me. My town is fair sized but in the days before the larger retailers there was not much competition for business and customers were taken for granted - price gouging wasn't just common, it was the way it was. The 'Mom and Pop' atmosphere that people say was destroyed by larger retailers was already long dead if it ever existed.

 

[FrChuckW]

Actually, it's called business acumen. If they really wanted to compete against a WalMart, Target, or whatever you need to know what your competition carries. Granted these big stores can carry a bigger selection of merchandise but they can't carry every brand or color or whatever. For just as many "Mom & Pop" stores that have gone out of business there are just as many that have put together a business plan and stayed in business because THEY changed their merchandise that they carry. They found out what the big stores didn't have or wouldn't or couldn't carry and stocked those items in their stores. They specialized in items that were hard to find, odd sizes, etc.

Those that succumbed failed to adjust to what was happening in today's world. I generally shop the big stores for most of my stuff, but if I can't find something I need there, especially in the way of hardware, I have two local ACE hardware stores that I know I can find what I need in.

 

[debilorrah]

I feel lucky then that the Target near me is a decent one. Good service, nice employees. I cannot say the same about Wal-Mart or K-Mart, for that matter. And the other Target in town is horrid. I guess it is all a matter of location.

 

[andorraclaim]

Quote:
Hey you can thank the Unions, Bush and Regan for everybody's jobs going across the border and overseas. If they weren't so greedy then maybe alot more of us would still have jobs. I grew up in Detroit, and now it's a ghost town with the third highest murder rate in the country. You can't blame a company for trying to make a profit and going where it costs less to manufacture items for sale.

As to the community being treated like a parasitic host, you couldn't be more wrong. They have a strong corporate outreach to the community. In 2007 alone they donated over $25,000,000 to local charities and community outreach. They are still one of the few stores that still allow the Salvation Army to have the Red Kettles out in front of their stores. Target won't allow them because it affects their image! Each store has a contact person and is given a certain amount of money each month to disperse to the community in requests for donations. They strongly support the Children's Miracle Network and a host of other charities.

AS to treating their employees like garbage, they have one of the best employee benefits programs going. Also each employee can put in a request for up to $1000.00 dollars from corporate to help out in a crisis situation. When Katrina hit, WalMart was one of the first companies to respond as well as take care of their employees.

You should possibly read this.
How Wal-Mart is Destroying America

Detroit is not the target community Walmart goes after. I was born in a very small ranch community in South Texas. Not a Walmart for 60 miles. A mom and pop strip in the center of town; pharmacy, butcher, grocer, everything a community needs. A Walmart opens in two towns over. Guess what happens to our strip?

As far as their outreach programs you sound like you are on the payroll. Let's see..March of Dimes/Miracle Childrens Network both commit expirements on dogs and cats (and not in the most humane way either) and the Katrina response was more marketing than action. And I'd put money down that they got a ton of subsidies from it. You really sound like an employee and that is fine. But don't defend one of the worst global employeers with two examples that can be stripped down with even the smallest amount of research. I am not even bringing up what they do outside of America. They told their employees voting for Obama this election was a vote against their jobs.

here's a couple more:
Wal-Mart's women -- employees and customers -- in unhealthy relationship
Serious Labor Abuses by Wal-Mart Supplier in China
Employee Abuse At Wal-Mart Intolerable

Edited to remove personal attacks. Please review the rules of posting on BYC

 

[Wildsky]

Quote:
Me too. Walmart is our best bet to stop and get everything and its an hour away.

I have noticed they aren't stocking some stuff I used to buy a lot. I even stopped at customer service and specifically ASKED them to please stock the one item (a meat marrinade) still don't have it.

I did happen to leave something behind a few months ago - I called when I got home and told them, explained I couldn't get back to get that bag I left. they were pretty good, told me to mark the stuff on the receipt and come back to the customer service desk next time and get my stuff.

 

[andorraclaim]

Quote:
I think the point is to quit arbitrarily giving your money to faceless boxes. No one in any chain store truly benefits from it's profits. That is not how capitalism works. Labor is just a form of debt relief (don't you find it odd that people work till they die..and usually leave debt behind!) Shop local and shop independent. If those are not options order online or make it yourself. Walmart, Target, Macy's, JC Penny's depend on your willingness to purchase instead of find or make an item.

 

[scoobychick]

I went for black Friday I took my 5 year old daught we spent hours searching for great thing only to come up with a couple things on our way out they stopped me looked a t my reciept then a plain dressed man who I saw when I was in the back cornner of the store came and told the door greeter to go through my bags like I had taken something I gave them reciepts and let them look as my daughter looked at me worried they finnaly after 5 minutes let me go (they found nothing!) I was mad and my daughter was scared I know he saw me take a twinki out of a box I already bought and give it to my daughter for breakfast and he thought I took a camera but I had the reciept when he saw it he should have stopped right then!
Also I just found out that they advertise things they never plan to carry Like tvs I tried to price match with a store out here and it has to be in stock they never had it and never planned to they just advertise it also Hungry Hippos is in the ad a picture and everything if you go online it says not sold online and not sold in stores!!!!