Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
+1. I used to shop at Walmart for all my groceries (and everything else). Finally one day I wondered why I was shopping there all the time when I hated Walmart. They are understaffed on purpose, so customers can't get assistance with anything, even checkout. I don't like having to use self checkouts just because there aren't enough cashiers. No one rounds up the carts so they are all over the parking lot, running into people's cars. Their inventory is frequently not stocked in a timely manner.
Not really. Ace, since you're in TX, have you ever shopped for groceries at HEB? Many of their grocery prices beat the heck out of Walmart's. I have compared each and every item I buy regularly, something many people don't do. They just automatically assume Walmart is cheaper because Walmart says so. And I guarantee you will get checked out three times as fast. And many people are not aware that these wonderful Walmart prices they think they are getting aren't so wonderful after all because of frequent scanner errors. The scanner often scans higher than the shelf tag.
I .....DO .... check and compare quite frequently.
Every time I do, my grocery list saves me money at Walmart.
Yours might not as it is not identical to mine .
It has been my experience that the " Walmart bashers" who constantly say..........." Walmart is not cheaper " are the shoppers who refuse to compare.
I was pressed for time the other day. I need groceries, drug store (not prescription) stuff, pet supplies, and a few computer things. I said where can I get all these things in a short period of time. The answer was Wally World so I went there.
Why do people shop at Wally World? Price and convenience.
it depends on what you are comparing. walmarts day to day prices are going to be lower than regular supermarkets. the prices at regular supermarkets are insane. now, I shop at regular supermarkets for most of my food but I only buy the stuff on sale (preferably with a coupon on top). that way I beat walmart prices. but if you just walk into a store to get what you want and don't check for sales, then you will make out better at walmart.
The problem isn't that people shop at Wal-Mart. The problem is the business model Wal-Mart presents and helps spread throughout the economy.
Americans are so trained to think of themselves as consumers, they sometimes forget they are also workers. And while Wal-Mart's ability to deliver cheap goods may be good for consumers in the short term, the spread of their business model is terrible for workers in the long term. For decades, the #1 employer in America was General Motors; today, it is Wal-Mart. A recent article in Salon highlights the difference that has made:
"A General Motors plant was the anchor of a community. It became the hub of a supply line for auto parts manufactured by other unionized companies. Its managers and factory workers earned enough to shop at local businesses and pay taxes to support public services. They had the resources and time to participate in the life of the community. They expected to stay with GM for their entire careers and to retire on a pension earned while working at the firm.
How very different from Walmart. When a Walmart opens up, local businesses close. Wages decline throughout the community. Many of the items in a Walmart store are made outside of the country, part of a global supply chain built in search of lower wages in order to meet Walmart’s low pricing demands. Workers often earn so little that they qualify for government benefits. Many Walmart employees are hired part-time or as temps. They lack job security and retirement security, other than the small Social Security checks their wages will accrue."
We're not sale shoppers. In the late 90s, we lived in rural Tennessee and started out at a Super Walmart in a small town where they didn't really have competition and accordingly charged monopoly prices. Since gas was cheap then, we discovered that we'd spend the same amount of groceries at the Kroger 50 miles away and come out of the store with higher quality products than we used to get at Walmart.
And then we moved to Florida, which is allegedly an expensive grocery store state, and discovered that shopping at the allegedly spendy Albertson's was still cheaper than what we used to pay at the Tennessee Walmart, even when you account for the differences in sales tax.
So after getting ripped off by Walmart too many times, I'm proud to say those scammers have only gotten money from us once in the past 15 years, and that was when a car battery died on a Sunday when we couldn't find anyone else open.
I .....DO .... check and compare quite frequently.
Every time I do, my grocery list saves me money at Walmart.
Yours might not as it is not identical to mine .
It has been my experience that the " Walmart bashers" who constantly say..........." Walmart is not cheaper " are the shoppers who refuse to compare.
OK. However, I have found an abundance of articles online suggesting Walmart's low prices aren't really the lowest. I have price compared my own grocery items, and Walmart isn't cheaper, but they are close. HEB is cheaper for me, however, it is based only in Texas. In Alaska, I have to pay much more for my groceries. And I am an unapologetic Walmart basher. That's because Walmart doesn't treat either their employees or customers well. And I don't care how good any store's prices are; to me that's unacceptable.
The problem isn't that people shop at Wal-Mart. The problem is the business model Wal-Mart presents and helps spread throughout the economy.
Americans are so trained to think of themselves as consumers, they sometimes forget they are also workers. And while Wal-Mart's ability to deliver cheap goods may be good for consumers in the short term, the spread of their business model is terrible for workers in the long term. For decades, the #1 employer in America was General Motors; today, it is Wal-Mart. A recent article in Salon highlights the difference that has made:
"A General Motors plant was the anchor of a community. It became the hub of a supply line for auto parts manufactured by other unionized companies. Its managers and factory workers earned enough to shop at local businesses and pay taxes to support public services. They had the resources and time to participate in the life of the community. They expected to stay with GM for their entire careers and to retire on a pension earned while working at the firm.
How very different from Walmart. When a Walmart opens up, local businesses close. Wages decline throughout the community. Many of the items in a Walmart store are made outside of the country, part of a global supply chain built in search of lower wages in order to meet Walmart’s low pricing demands. Workers often earn so little that they qualify for government benefits. Many Walmart employees are hired part-time or as temps. They lack job security and retirement security, other than the small Social Security checks their wages will accrue."
I will NOT shop at Wal-Mart for many, many reasons.
-Wal-Mart treats their workers like ****.
-Wal-Mart will pay their workers as little as they can and give them no benefits.
-Wal-Mart forces mom & pop stores to close down.
-Wal-Mart forces manufacturers to ship jobs to China.
-10% of ALL U.S. goods made in China are going to Wal-Mart.
-Wal-Mart is one of the BIGGEST welfare queens.
And there is THIS:
So, they are asking workers to help other workers because they can't pay them a livable wage. So, what is wrong with this picture?
And for all of you think that buying at Wal-Mart is good because it is cheap, think again. Yeah, you can get those cheap shirts but in the long run it will cost you a lot more because for one thing, you will have to keep buying those cheap shirts when they fall apart (when a good quality one will last so much longer). There are so many other reasons.
Here is an article to read it you truly want to know why it is not a bargain to shop there.
I don't shop at Walmart very often. It is actually out of the way to go there too for me. I might go about 3-4 times a year. My 'mart of choice is Target. I find it to be a little cleaner and more pleasant.
My parents go to Walmart all the time, though when I developed my Target preference, our region didn't have Walmarts. And we later moved to a region with lots of Walmarts, no Targets.
I never liked Walmart, other than the fact that they tend to be open later than Targets.
But for all of the 'marts, on the whole they have the same or equivalent stuff at similar quality. But they attract different demographics, and have different target customers. I don't fit into Walmart's demo. There is a perception that Walmart is WAY cheaper than the other 'marts. But in my experience, the math isn't so simple. Walmart has loss leaders and stuff they over charge for. Target has the same. But most things I find are within a few cents of the other store. Target has more expensive, albeit generally more fashionable clothing. Target doesn't stock the cheapest of the housewares stuff, where as Walmart does.
Most people choose to shop at stores that fit their "identity." I have many friends who wouldn't be caught dead at Walmart ever. Would never buy clothing at a low level department store like Target or Sears or JC Penny. And my parents avoid Target like the plague because they think it is too expensive for their retired budget. They have downgraded though, they go to the 99 cent store all the time.
But we can't deny the effect of the Walmart economy. With the low opportunity jobs by Walmart and the like, we are shifting the burden of employers paying living wages to the government filling the gaps of low wages with social benefits. Meanwhile our deficit increases, and so does Walmart's stock price.
I will say, I bought my stainless pots at Walmart, a brand I hadn't heard of. They were half the price of all the other options available. Still going strong on year 12 now. That was my best Walmart purchase ever. The only long lasting thing I have ever got there.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
