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Old 04-02-2014, 02:47 PM
 
Location: NJ
31,771 posts, read 40,529,027 times
Reputation: 24590

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Quote:
Originally Posted by CatwomanofV View Post

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.
you don't really know this nor do you really care about that. you have strong anti-walmart beliefs which are wonderful, but I don't think you are giving an honest opinion regarding the value of their products. I don't think its right to be dishonest because you are attacking something you consider evil.
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Old 04-02-2014, 03:32 PM
 
Location: Carmichael, CA
2,409 posts, read 4,428,182 times
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I'm noticing a lot of all-or-nothing comments--because WalMart isn't cheapest on everything, don't shop there.

I know prices and I know quality. I buy my clothes at a clothing store, but name-brand underwear and socks at WalMart. Fresh meat, organic produce and local milk from the local grocery store (that charges double the WalMart price) but name-brand frozen, packaged and canned goods at WalMart.

I buy American if I can find a quality item at a fair price. Sometimes that's at WalMart, sometimes elsewhere. Sometimes I settle for imported and regret times gone by before everything became all plastic and cheap.

Various people have commented that WalMart is terrible, others comment about parking and long lines. If WalMart were truly so terrible, would so many customers be there? I park far away anyway, for the exercise, and stand in line reading my Kindle, so neither bothers me.

A consumer that needs to make their money go as far as possible should know the available stock and prices of all their shopping choices so they can make their best choices. That may be WalMart, that may not. Whatever works for you.
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Old 04-02-2014, 03:45 PM
 
Location: Buckeye, AZ
38,936 posts, read 23,771,256 times
Reputation: 14125
For Arizona, Walmart is usually the best option, food stores aren't. Fry's (Kroger's) use to be a good bargain but now they are not. Basha's (a local) is rarely a good deal, Albertson's is the best stand-alone supermarket most times, Safeway is hit or miss and sometimes Sprouts (a local natural supermarket) is the best deals. Target is no where near Walmart on value for the most part. I would rather go to Costco but it much further out than the nearest Sam's Club. I can understand if the quality isn't as good but I've never noticed much of a difference in jeans or shirts I buy at Walmart vs other issues.
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Old 04-02-2014, 04:18 PM
 
Location: La Mesa Aka The Table
9,794 posts, read 11,465,832 times
Reputation: 11870
Only 50 a year old divorcee would buy their clothes at Walmart. Chicks dig guys with some style and not afraid to spend a little money on themselves. As far as lower prices on food,Target here in So Cal blows Walmart away. The chicks that shop at target look hotter also.
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Old 04-02-2014, 04:20 PM
 
Location: Kansas City, MO
3,565 posts, read 7,938,434 times
Reputation: 2603
Quote:
Originally Posted by jade408 View Post
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.
Are you sure you don't fit Walmart's demographic?

Do you know why your many friends who "wouldn't be caught dead" in Walmart are like that?

Do you know why they wouldn't buy clothing from Sears or JCPenney?

Do they feel the same way about Macy's (the most middle-of-the-road department store out there)?
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Old 04-02-2014, 05:32 PM
 
9,891 posts, read 11,701,103 times
Reputation: 22085
Quote:
When a Walmart opens up, local businesses close. Wages decline throughout the community.

Fact. A lot of retail stores are closing all over the nation. Look at the list of some that will close this year. in fact 2,104 have announced they will be closing this year.

2014 Retail Stores Closing, Going Out of Business, Filing Bankruptcy

It is not Walmart that is driving them out of business. It is the Internet that is putting them out of business. The Internet is driving a huge number of retail stores out of business. The other thing that is happening is the Internet has forced the large chains such as Walmart to open Internet divisions, and not only are they closing some stores, but as leases run out, they are moving out of malls, and into half the size free standing stores. They are training their people to have their customers order from the Internet at the stores they are keeping.


Compare Walmart wages against other retail stores, and for comparable job you will find they are right about where the others are. Retail businesses all pay about the same, be it a large store like Walmart or a mom and pop. And that includes major quality stores. In fact, the average mom and pop store, will pay the least. Wages only decline for the community when you total all wages in the area and average them as Walmart will be hiring a lot of brand new employees at starting wages with no time earned raises, promotions, etc. But the same can be said when any major retail operation starts up in an area. Local businesses close all the time, not just because of Walmart. Majority of new businesses will fail within 2 to 5 years, even without Walmart near them.

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.

Look at the top quality stores in the nation. The same can be said about them, that their goods are made outside of this country, just like Walmart. In fact, the goods for sale, will very often be made in the same foreign factory as for Walmart.

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."

Ditto for all retail businesses. Walmart, Macy's and other retail stores, are all low pay. It is not just Walmart that pays low. The advantage that Walmart's employees have over Macy's employees earning about the same money, Walmart employees don't have to wear dress clothes to work.
Catwoman--That article is a hachet job, and cannot be cannot be considered a real news source.

Quote:
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.
That is their privilege to choose where they shop. They want bragging rights where they shop. They are too stuck up to shop at those so called lower class stores in their minds, and look down their nose at anything that is not what the think is the best. Having spent a lot of time in the retail business when I was young, selling furniture in one of the top 10 department stores working on commission earning in today's dollars $125,000 plus per year, while the clerks were earning minimum wages, so I understand retail. I managed several stores back then. The average employees were earning the equivalent low wages to what Walmart employees earn. Only 7 employees in the store were earning what I was earning not even the assistant manager. Things have not changed today, with high end department stores employees earning right close to what Walmart earns.

Quote:
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.
Why just pick on Walmart. Retail businesses regardless of the quality of goods they sell, are all low pay businesses. The only exception are the ones that pay commissions for high end goods, to highly specialized salespeople like I was. I worked on commission for all my working career from August 1952 till I retired. This is what is known in the business as big ticket sales. In 1971, I went into the real estate business till I retired.

The furniture, big appliance, and electronic departments, made almost the profit the rest of the entire store earned. To get the best, they paid a very good commission to us. But the rest of the store worked for Walmart type wages. And I am talking of one of the finest top end department stores in the nation.

Quote:
-10% of ALL U.S. goods made in China are going to Wal-Mart.
That is due to the sheer size of Walmart. And just think the other 90%, go to places like Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Sears, Target, and Mom and Pop local stores. All retail sells Chinese made goods.
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Old 04-02-2014, 06:35 PM
 
Location: West of Louisiana, East of New Mexico
2,916 posts, read 2,982,662 times
Reputation: 7036
For food: Walmart is only cheaper on junk and overly processed foods. Fruits, veggies, lean meats etc., WM is usually pricier than many other stores.

I personally like Target better for random odds and ends. More pleasant experience and better customer service. I'm not sure why people feel like they have to buy all of their groceries in the same place.
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Old 04-02-2014, 06:55 PM
 
Location: Somewhere in America
15,479 posts, read 15,538,228 times
Reputation: 28462
Quote:
Originally Posted by hitman619 View Post
Only 50 a year old divorcee would buy their clothes at Walmart.
I'm neither of those things and I have clothes from Walmart.
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Old 04-02-2014, 07:07 PM
 
Location: The beautiful Garden State
2,734 posts, read 4,136,754 times
Reputation: 3671
Quote:
Originally Posted by mkpunk View Post
As we all know people like to complain about why people shop at Walmart because they have foreign made goods that you can get elsewhere. On a thread in the Work and Employment forum, I replied to a poster who was saying we should buy more American. All well and good but look at the math of buying foreign made goods sold at your Walmart vs. buying American made goods through All-American Clothing.

$4.99 generic tee shirts made in a foreign country at Walmart vs. $9.99 American made generic tee shirts
$7.49 graphic tee shirts made in a foreign country at Walmart vs. $13.99 American made graphic tee shirts
$14.99 shorts made in a foreign country at Walmart vs. $43.99 American made shorts
$13.99 khaki pants made in a foreign country at Walmart vs. $48.99 American made khaki pants
$19.99 jeans made in a foreign country at Walmart vs. $48.99 American made jeans
$9.99 for six pairs of socks made in a foreign country at Walmart vs. $11.99 for three pairs of American made socks

Economics 101, people want the best bang for their buck. This is why in the 1970's and 80's the Japanese cars came into America. They were cheaper upfront and cheaper over the long time because of their better gas mileage. It is only recent that Ford and GM have gotten there (the same with Chrysler as it is owned by Fiat.)

The issue is in many cases you can get DOUBLE of the items at Walmart as you can for All American Clothing prices. Why would someone on a budget think it is better to buy one for the price of two?
Most of their stuff is junk, though, and doesn't last as long as better-made clothing, so you really don't do better in the long run. A lot of polyester and cheap, thin fabrics.

Besides, if you carefully comb the sales racks at better stores, you can get good deals on much better clothing that will last longer.

I rarely buy clothes there anyway. The clothes are too large. I wear petite sizes.

I would never buy produce at Walmart, either. No way.
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Old 04-02-2014, 07:10 PM
 
Location: World
4,204 posts, read 4,666,052 times
Reputation: 2841
I shop at Walmart as its one stop place for lot of things for me. Gasoline, Cigarettes, Bread, Bakery, Milk, Eggs, Meat, Vegetables, Canned Food, Yoghurt, Cat food, T-Shirts, Water, Chocolates. I also shop at Walmart.com for kitchen gadgets. I get the stuff which I am looking for at Walmart and price is not bad. In other stores, variety is just not there.I always found Walmart staff very friendly.
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