Why Does Walmart Hate Atlanta? (Vinings, Glenwood: Home Depot, to buy, calculator)

[FlyiMetro]

Originally Posted by Brian

I don't think Walmart really hates Atlanta. Walmart's Eastern headquarters is located in Atlanta.

Eastern HQ? Where is this location exactly?

[ATLTJL]

You mean them job-killin' bureaucrats?

I know you're joking, but a lot of people really think this.

WM does want to kill jobs. Every busines does. Even that mom & pop business everybody loves does. If they sell hammers, of course they want every other place that sells hammers to go out of business because it means more business to them. It's capitalism.

The South Park episode about Wal-Mart really hit the nail on the head exactly at the end of the episode when all the townspeople decided to boycott WM and shop local instead. Over time, the local stores got bigger and bigger and eventually became WM equivalents. That's just the way it works. A lot of people forget that WM wasn't some corporate giant that aliens plopped on earth. It's just an extremely successful retailer that started out as a mom & pop in Arkansas. That's all it is, and if it's gone, some other retailer will take it's place if it's run slickly enough.

[Mishap]

Originally Posted by Mal93

I haven't seen a Wal-Mart with a garden center in a while- maybe in more suburban/rural areas? (I know the Cobb Pkwy one got rid of theirs a few years ago and the Howell Mill road one doesn't have one). Seems like garden centers and auto centers have migrated toward providing more grocery options. Fine by me, we have a great selection of independent or family-owned landscaping centers with less vanilla selections of plants suitable for our climate.

Blame the rise of Home Depot which is 1/3 garden center (which killed a lot of independent nurseries). The overlap between needing 100lb of potting soil and a tableware set is relatively small so they probably realized it wasn't worth the real estate especially in Home Depot country. I'm sure in areas where Walmart is the only game in town, they have all their bases covered but those areas usually also have the advantage of cheaper real estate meaning 50,000 sf of outdoor gardening space isn't a big deal. It's also why they minimized pets to food and accessories w/ the growth of Petsmart/Petco. I remember the big box stores used to sell rodents and fish (probably wouldn't work great w/ today's grocery model).

[Mal93]

oh yes, I remember the poor fish at Wal-Mart. I think the one near my mom's house still has them.

[ATLTJL]

The one on Chamblee Tucker sells fish.

As someone who keeps fish, I really wish WM wouldn't do this because I don't think the people who work there know what they are doing. But, again, it's the failure of local governments who really should regulate how live animlas are kept and who is allowed to do it.

Pet supplies is one area that shocks me about WM. They started selling groceries and quickly became the number 2 grocer in America, even though that segment was already saturated. I'm amazed that they don't really beef up their pet supplies and try to compete directly with Petsmart and Petco. Maybe it's because people love their animals so much that they wouldn't feed their animals food purchased at WM thinking it isn't as good, which it probably wouldn't be. I probably wouldn't buy food at WM, but I would buy things like dog beds, aquairum supplies, etc. if they were good national brands and sold at a good price. WM could really nail Petsmart or Petco if they sold the same brands because how often have you realized your dog is out of food after those places are already closed for the night, or when it just isn't convenient to get to one?

[JoeTarheel]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

The one on Chamblee Tucker sells fish.

As someone who keeps fish, I really wish WM wouldn't do this because I don't think the people who work there know what they are doing. But, again, it's the failure of local governments who really should regulate how live animlas are kept and who is allowed to do it.

Pet supplies is one area that shocks me about WM. They started selling groceries and quickly became the number 2 grocer in America, even though that segment was already saturated. I'm amazed that they don't really beef up their pet supplies and try to compete directly with Petsmart and Petco. Maybe it's because people love their animals so much that they wouldn't feed their animals food purchased at WM thinking it isn't as good, which it probably wouldn't be. I probably wouldn't buy food at WM, but I would buy things like dog beds, aquairum supplies, etc. if they were good national brands and sold at a good price. WM could really nail Petsmart or Petco if they sold the same brands because how often have you realized your dog is out of food after those places are already closed for the night, or when it just isn't convenient to get to one?

Walmart sells some premium brands like Iams and Pure Balance etc, so I don't know why it would be of any lesser quality than it is at any other store. All you have to do is look at the ingredients on the bag to decide if it's good enough for your pet. And it's usually a couple of dollars cheaper than at Petsmart.

I don't know why Walmart doesn't increase its offerings in this area to compete with the larger pet supply stores. Those 2 or 3 aisles are not really competitive with an entire store dedicated to pets.

[Mishap]

Originally Posted by FlyiMetro

Eastern HQ? Where is this location exactly?

Near Powers Ferry:
https://foursquare.com/v/walmart-eas...f3f04d88a4bf94

Wal-Mart sets up East Coast office in Atlanta | Reuters

[ATLTJL]

Walmart sells some premium brands like Iams and Pure Balance etc,

You're probably right from the perspective of an average consumer, and I'm sure some people do purchase those foods. I don't really consider Iams a premium brand, though. I feed my dog Natural Balance, and I would consider that, Wellness, Blue Buffalo, etc. some nice premium brands that WM could stock.

I know it might sound foofoo or whatever, but these are brands readily available at Petsmart, Petco, etc. I'm not talking about the ultra-premium brands that you have to get at specialty stores. A lot of pet people consider Iams complete garbage. I don't judge anybody, and I'd probably feed it to my dog if it agreed with her, but Natural Balance is just the food that she likes, doesn't give her stinky gas, and (sorry to sound gross) gives her well formed poops that are easy for me to pick up. I think there are enough people that use this fairly premium grade food that WM could probably make a profit stocking it. I know the big box pet stores sell a lot of it, and a lot more people are serious about the health of their pets nowadays. That's why I'm so surprised to see that WM hasn't tapped into this market. To be honest, their pet section is really quite pitiful.

I think they could be highly successful in this arena because I have noticed wide disparity in the prices of pet products. A nylabone that sells at Petsmart for $12.99 can literally sell at Pet Supermarket for $7.99. It seems like there is a great opportunity there to be a low cost leader. If you can procure the brands that people want, I think most people would welcome the price competition. Maybe it would only work in metros like Atlanta, I'm sure in the majority of the country most people are still feeding their dogs table scraps and Alpo.

The same thing is true of all the pet supplies. WM pretty much sells bottom of the line aquarium supplies, pet shampoos, etc. If they upgraded to some more respected brands and sold them at a good price, I bet they could take a serious chunk away from Petsmart and Petco.

[JoeTarheel]

Originally Posted by ATLTJL

You're probably right from the perspective of an average consumer, and I'm sure some people do purchase those foods. I don't really consider Iams a premium brand, though. I feed my dog Natural Balance, and I would consider that, Wellness, Blue Buffalo, etc. some nice premium brands that WM could stock.

I know it might sound foofoo or whatever, but these are brands readily available at Petsmart, Petco, etc. I'm not talking about the ultra-premium brands that you have to get at specialty stores. A lot of pet people consider Iams complete garbage. I don't judge anybody, and I'd probably feed it to my dog if it agreed with her, but Natural Balance is just the food that she likes, doesn't give her stinky gas, and (sorry to sound gross) gives her well formed poops that are easy for me to pick up. I think there are enough people that use this fairly premium grade food that WM could probably make a profit stocking it. I know the big box pet stores sell a lot of it, and a lot more people are serious about the health of their pets nowadays. That's why I'm so surprised to see that WM hasn't tapped into this market. To be honest, their pet section is really quite pitiful.

I think they could be highly successful in this arena because I have noticed wide disparity in the prices of pet products. A nylabone that sells at Petsmart for $12.99 can literally sell at Pet Supermarket for $7.99. It seems like there is a great opportunity there to be a low cost leader. If you can procure the brands that people want, I think most people would welcome the price competition. Maybe it would only work in metros like Atlanta, I'm sure in the majority of the country most people are still feeding their dogs table scraps and Alpo.

The same thing is true of all the pet supplies. WM pretty much sells bottom of the line aquarium supplies, pet shampoos, etc. If they upgraded to some more respected brands and sold them at a good price, I bet they could take a serious chunk away from Petsmart and Petco.

Oh, you're one of those dog owners...yeah, I guess I'm an average consumer compared to someone who spends double to triple the amount that I do on dog food. I have a weimaraner that eats like a small horse, so I just can't afford to spend that kind of money on her food when I can get a good brand for much much less.

[ATLTJL]

Oh, you're one of those dog owners

I didn't want to be, I promise! I really wanted to use a brand that I could get at any Kroger, but if they didn't give her diarrhea, they gave her gas, and if they didn't do that, they gave her a rash. I tried a bunch of different foods before settling on Natural Balance. They have a limited ingredient version, which is what she gets. I'd love to spend less on food, but it's not worth the problems.

I also believe that a lot of problems you wouldn't think can be fixed by switching foods. If your dog gets a rash, it may not be anything he got into, it might be the food. A lot of stomach problems can be solved with food as well. I did a ton of research before settling on one of the more expensive brands, but the common knowledge is that buying good dog food can actually save you money on vet bills later.

If you don't need it, you're lucky. But give it a try if you need it down the road. I do have to spend about $50 a month on her food (she's a 65 pound mutt), but at Pet Supermarket the 10th bag is free, so it's really not so bad. She's healthy as a horse on this food, so I don't want to mess with what isn't broken. They do eat considerably less when there isn't as much filler in the food, too, so you don't have to buy as much.