More on WalMart
I was not the only one to notice the dissatisfaction with WalMart despite some pundits using it as an economic indicator.
Glen, the Evil Puppy Blender links to two other bloggers with thoughts of their own:
#1) -
Professor Bainbridge:
bq. Wal-Mart's Woes, Online Shopping, and the Economy: A Comment
Bad news at Wal-Mart panicked some observers into worrying that the holiday shopping season will be a bust this year, dragging down the economy.
Wal-Mart said sales had not met expectations in the week ended on Black Friday -- the day after Thanksgiving and one of the year's biggest shopping days. (Source: CNN Money)
bq. It turns out, however, that the holiday shopping season is booming almost everywhere except Wal-mart:
Near-record crowds turned out for the holiday shopping season's Thanksgiving weekend kickoff, bringing with them unexpectedly robust sales gains to many malls and retail chains across the country.
Except, surprisingly, at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (Source: WSJ($))
bq. This is an important story because Wal-Mart's vast size has made it a bellwhether for the retail segment and, indeed, for the market as a whole. We thus need an alternative version of the story in which Wal-mart's troubles actually indicate that the economy is doing well.
bq. Here's one possibility that occurs to me: Whenever I've shopped at Wal-Mart, its product mix has always struck me as being decidedly down market, even as compared to other big box stores. (CostCo, for example, has a well-deserved reputation as, of all things,
a fine wine merchant.) Wal-Mart products seem cheap both in price but also quality. During economic bad times, price may dominate consumer decisionmaking, which gave Wal-Mart a huge advantage. As the economy improves, however, perhaps consumers are willing to spend a few bucks more to get a more up-scale product than Wal-Mart offers.
#2) -
Matt Crash:
bq. I just got back from Target. I needed to pick up a few things, and ice cream was on sale. (Mmmm...ice cream...) I went to Target because it is a close store; I can be in and out and back home in half an hour. The two Wal-Marts in Tuscaloosa are each roughly fifteen minutes away from my apartment; Target is simply more convenient. Glenn Reynolds talked about Target earlier today (
here and
here), and I figured I'd jump ino the fray.
bq. To quote Reynolds, "I've never understood the fashionable hatred of Wal-Mart, but I've also never really liked shopping there." I second the motion. Wal-Mart has never been an asthetically pleasing store to shop; the aisles are narrow, the parking lots are messy, the color scheme is bland. I realize that asthetics don't always matter when you're buying milk and detergent. I can accept that, but Wal-Mart starts to lose the battle when Target clearly goes out of its way to maintain wide aisles, a slightly more upscale selection of merchandise and a store that's not downright filthy six days out of seven. Maybe Wal-Marts outside of the Southeast are clean and neat, but I've yet to see a store stay clean and pleasant for more than six months after its opening. Those of us with the option don't want to shop at Wal-Mart; not out of opposition to red state values or capitalism. We shop at Target because our feet don't stick to the floor while walking down the frozen food aisle.
Posted by DaveH at November 29, 2004 9:18 PM