This is WRONG!

[azsnowman]

Sorry Jacki, but I'm fixing to BLAST WALLY WORLD

Like the song by Alan Jackson...."The Little Man!" The words of this song are SO true, I am SOOOOO P.O.'d at the moment I know I'm gonna get BLASTED for this but DANG IT....the *little man* doesn't have a fighting chance anymore with Wal Mart. Since Walmart has moved into ShowLow, I cannot even BEGIN to tell you HOW MANY mom and pop retailers have FALLEN! You CANNOT compete with them, they have a *strangle hold* on the market. Popular Outdoor Outfitters was the ONLY place on the mountain that I could buy my work boots, winter clothing etc. I REFUSE to buy WALLY WORLD shoes/boots, they don't last, they're CHEAPLY made (in a sweat shop by some illegal alliens I'm sure)......"Grrrrrr!"


SHOW LOW - Popular Outdoor Outfitters closed its store here this week. Shoppers were greeted with "closed" signs Tuesday morning.
Workers packing up the merchandise Tuesday morning offered little information as to why the store was closing although one blamed the competition with Wal-Mart.
According to a spokesperson at the coporate offices of Popular, the Arizona company is closing two of its 17 stores to consolidate its business. The Show Low store was the first closure and the second one will be closed next week.
The Show Low store was "not doing as much (business) as we wanted," said the spokesperson.
Popular Outdoors employed approxiamtely four or five permanent workers.
"Hopefully, after consolidating, we can grow again," said the spokesperson.


Dennis

[azsnowman]

I know competition is a GOOD thing but when you have a strangle hold on the market like WalMart, it's IMPOSSIBLE to fight them. I NOW have to drive to Flagstaff to do ALL of my shopping, except for groceries....I "WILL NOT" buy sub standard "Faded Glory" and *other WalMart Brands" of clothes!

Dennis

[chadtm80]

Well as you know I disagree with you on this issue.... Wal Mart has built them a wonderfull buisness and its not our place to jump in and tell them they are doing "to good of a job" and that they need to cut back.. When we started this board we were told that we wouldnt make it.. TWC and WWBB had a "lock" on the weather scene.. Well guess what.. We did more then just make it

[Lindaloo]

I love Wally World but I feel sorry for the small town business owners when they move in. During Christmas, I found Wally World to be no better on their prices than anyone else, especially clothing. Heck, I found better discounts at JC Penney in that dept. They are getting too big for their britches and are jacking up the prices.

As for the groceries, I find they are much better on the prices than the locally owned grocery stores.

[chadtm80]

I will continue to shop there.. Love it Love it Love it If you opened up a buisness and it was putting me out of buisness should I be able to step in and say your not allowed to do that good?

[Lindaloo]

By all means no. lol. I think it is wonderful that they are making it. When Sam Walton was running things the stores were much more price friendly. I miss him. Did I mention I shopped there yesterday? LOL!!

[chadtm80]

Prices MIGHT have gone up slightly, just as prices HAVE to do, but as far as comparison shoping.. You wont find it cheaper The buisness comment was actually directed to my anti wally world friend from AZ lol

[Lindaloo]

Prices MIGHT have gone up slightly, just as prices HAVE to do, but as far as comparison shoping.. You wont find it cheaper The buisness comment was actually directed to my anti wally world friend from AZ lol

ROFL!! Oops.

[azskyman]

Dennis, you are right about one thing. The mom and pop businesses can't compete with the big box stores like Wally World or Target. What we have discovered, though, is that certain specialty stores are actually attracted to sites near the neighborhood Walmart so they can snag the shoppers on their way in or out of the parking lot.

I do believe that Walmart has to do a little soul searching internally to get their employee image and philosophies cleaned up back toward Sam's objectives.

But the big guns are here to stay, whether it be Home Depot, Walmart, Target, Kohls, Lowes, or whatever.

In the end, they do benefit the consumer...but it is sad to see the little guys having to shut their doors.

[GalvestonDuck]

That's been going on for quite a while. I used to work with a nurse who refused to shop at Wal-Mart because of how they put the small businesses out of business.

[StormCrazyIowan]

Well Dennis, you don't have to worry about me taking offense....WalMart is only a place I am working to get by, not my life!! It is a shame when small businesses go under, and at the same time, a little bit eerie how big WalMart is....but will I ever not shop there? Nope, I'd lose my mind, they really do have good deals!

[Lindaloo]

Well Dennis, you don't have to worry about me taking offense....WalMart is only a place I am working to get by, not my life!! It is a shame when small businesses go under, and at the same time, a little bit eerie how big WalMart is....but will I ever not shop there? Nope, I'd lose my mind, they really do have good deals!

My sister gets paid by Walmart, cashes her check, then shops. End result? Broke!! lol.

[stormraiser]

I look at it this way. Walmart has made it by selling cheap stuff cheap. If you want cheaply made goods, you know where to go. I thought they used to be into selling American goods, but that seems to have fallen by the wayside. If you want quality, you know where not to go, but if you want cheap, they will have you coming back time and time and time again, because the stuff isn't made to last.

[Guest]

I shop Walmart because its cheap. But I believe in spreading MY MONEY around and I shop Target alot too. If you want quality you need to shop elsewhere - unfortunately Walmart has put alot of Mom & Pops out of business.

When the economy is bad - like it is and it is - people don't have the extra income to pursue better quality goods - they go for what they can get with the money they got. When the economy is good like it was 5 or 6 years ago - everyone shops everywhere and cost didn't matter.

Sam Walton was a genuis in devising the Walmart and Sam's Club way of shopping - and earned the American dream - it was sad to see that he couldn't be around to enjoy it.

[coriolis]

This trend started with KMart, which is now hurting.

I avoid Walmart because its 20 minutes away and I hate the 1,000 acre parking lot and the crowds. Everything is stacked to the ceiling and you can't find your way around.

Dennis, I would suggest buying the good stuff off the internet, but that's no substitute for going into a store and trying on the boots that you'll have to live with for a few years.

My favorite store is still the dollar store within walking distance.

[OtherHD]

Not to mention the fact that Wal-Marts have raped the urban landscape in countless cities across the US. (ie. Big ugly boxes with huge parking lots)

[george_r_1961]

Many large chains..not just Walmart..lure customers away from the mom and pop stores with low prices that mysteriously go up after the mom and pops go out of business. Fair? Hell no. Legal? Yes it is. Free enterprise means just that. Personally I try to avoid the large chains with their underpaid employees with painted on smiles as much as possible, as the quality of the merchandise, especially clothing, is often shoddy. Avoiding the chain stores is getting harder and harder to do though

[CajunMama]

You can't put all the blame on Walmart. The consumers CHOOSE where they want to shop. You also need to be upset with your fellow shoppers. Coriolis also brought up another good point...internet shopping. Many people choose to shop from home now also thus hurting the local retailers.

[azsnowman]

It's a crying shame that they come into *Small Town America* with their shody business practices, ie...low pay, no benefits (well, they do, just cost ya up the rear) and FORCE people to shop there, THAT'S the part I HATE and YES, I DO hate it. Michelle and I (like I've posted before) lead a very comfortable life, not too much stess, financially secure and have the choice of shopping pretty much where we want to (to a certain extent) and it BURNS my britches to be FORCED into either shopping at Wally World ~OR~ driving 120 miles to Flagstaff.

Chad, I agree with you *GASP*........it's FREE enterprise that made America what it is BUT, to run a monopoly like they do, treating their employees like they do (Good Ole Sam's probably turning over in his grave right now for the way his GREEDY kids are running the show) is NOT right IMHO. They don't give a flyin' rats asp about the small man....I do EVERYTHING in my power to support the Mom and Pop because "I'm" a ma and pa operation.

Sad fact, we shop there, we HAVE to, mainly for groceries, any hard goods, clothing, shoes etc, we make a trip to Flagstaff. Like I said, we're comfortable but we too, like everyone else, have to watch our money CUZ.......I wanna retire AGAIN here very shortly!

Dennis

[george_r_1961]

umm...who is putting all the blame on Walmart?????