The wages are about on par with local wages here. The companies that closed here were low volume
stores that people barely shopped at anyway because they didn't cater to wants. The "sweatshop operations"
is a local clothing company that makes several million per year doing
Wal-Mart fabric. The local operations
also destroyed the environment. If you don't believe look up EPA Superfund sites in every state.
As far as catering to wants. I'm saying our hometown is 1/2 mile from a college but, still does not cater to that.
The downtown section is still reminiscent of the 50's. It is a mix of florist shops, bridal shops, finance companies,
and old men clothing shops. If someone tried to open a tattoo parlor they would have to jump through so many
hoops and be zoned to an industrial park that it is not worth it. The same thing is true of bistros, open floor music, alternative shops.
Nobody shops downtown because it doesn't cater to anyone's needs. How often do you need to visit bridal
shops, florists?
Instead those college students and adults usually drive over the border and shop in NC. My own elderly parents
do not shop in our town because it does not even fulfill their needs. The city could revitalize downtown but, there isn't much interest.
The clothing manufacturers that were here did themselves in as far as I can see regarding that the people that worked
there could not afford the products they made. If your store is unique and different from
Wal-Mart you can make a
business of it. If you try to keep the stores as 1950 Mayberry nobody is interested.
My father gets his medication from
Wal-Mart and that is because his prescriptions are 1/2 the price if it were
through a local pharmacy. He wouldn't be able to afford it.