cr0w
Old Member
Goddammit.
I used the store pickup option, so I bought it online and went to pick it up an hour later. I only use Ebay and Amazon as a last resort, since I'm old and I prefer to physically go to the store to get something.
-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Walmart improving market share and sales while competitors are closing stores
- Thread starter therealist
- Start date
Goddammit.
I used the store pickup option, so I bought it online and went to pick it up an hour later. I only use Ebay and Amazon as a last resort, since I'm old and I prefer to physically go to the store to get something.
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
Japan has Walmart. It's just called something else.
Walmart-chan
*Tips whiskey glass*
Unknown Soldier
Member
Walmart is muscling up to battle against Amazon, because somebody has to.
Whoever wins, we lose.
Whoever wins, we lose.
Skyball Paint
Member
I can tell you, from experience, that it's very likely they straight up didn't have enough workers.
Why ensure customers have the service they need when you can run on a skeleton crew and pass the savings onto the shareholders?
That's fair enough - but when you're on a limited budget I'm afraid I will always choose where I can buy something the cheapest.
It's either that or I end up in my overdraft
Razgriz-Specter
Member
Now I definitely had my problems working at Walmart(mainly dumb people who were in there at every level.)
But im going to give Walmart some credit on this especially with the amount of people they employ.
Literally my first job, absolutely easy as hell(overnight stocking at first) and started at $9.50 an hour in February but was making just about $11 by June.
Promotion opportunities like crazy, decent vacation (especially if you have good managers), absolutely all the unpaid timeoff you can possibly need, guaranteed 40 hours a week and no issues with overtime.
I left after Christmas after nearly 4 years as I was sick and that Christmas rush had me fed up but looking for a similar position elsewhere, nobody is even remotely close in this area.
Randolph Freelander
Member
That's management's role, though. If the staffing level isn't costing you business, and if increased staffing doesn't gain you business (enough to cover costs), then obviously run with as few people as possible until one of those measures changes.
Vanillalite
Ask me about the GAF Notebook
My problem is unlike my parents I don't have the room nor do I have an extra freezer to buy shit in bulk.
We still go, but we can't go to crazy we don't have room to store all of the bulk shit from Costco.
NOLA_Gaffer
Banned
As much as I want to give other businesses in my area the...well, business, it's hard to fight Wal-Mart's prices. Why would I spend two to three times as much for the same items when I don't have to?
Sometimes layoffs have nothing to do with the financial health of the organization.
Pretty much this. The only things I won't buy at Walmart are meat and...I think that's it. Oh, and clothes. Walmart's a grocery and toothpaste/hygiene store for me.
sixteen-bit
Member
in 10 years it'll only be Walmart and Amazon in the retail space
family_guy
Member
Pushed them out or did consumers speak with their wallets and let this happen?
and Aldi somehow
Don't forget Kroger!
Earthbound64
Banned
Your parents are likely wasting more money by paying to run an extra freezer than they're saving by buying double the amount in bulk.
most people literally cannot afford to make purchasing decisions on that basis
DOWN
Banned
? Amazon is priced competing with Wal Mart and causes the exact same concerns of stepping on other specialty stores by carrying everything. Same worker and community concerns.
Absolutely. want vs. need
hey_monkey
Banned
Why pay more? Better quality goods, better companies, better treatment, better retail environment. (also it's generally good for all humanity to not be governed by the 'i got mine' mentality. sigh.)
Why not pay more? Plenty of people can't afford it and Walmart is a great solution for the poor who can't buy better quality or in bulk, even though it means replacing stuff that would last a little longer if they could afford to buy it somewhere else for a little more.
:/
Why not pay more? Plenty of people can't afford it and Walmart is a great solution for the poor who can't buy better quality or in bulk, even though it means replacing stuff that would last a little longer if they could afford to buy it somewhere else for a little more.
:/
This doesn't honestly surprise me, they're half the reason for the retail apocalypse to begin with and expanding their business and offering financial services to many of the low income people they server further bolsters their dominance of the entire low end of the retail market.
Honestly, the shift in the retail market just reflects the shift in the economic standing of shoppers with Walmart obviously providing everything low income shoppers need and the financial services to support them.
I'm surprised local municipalities haven't pushed back harder against them. Entire areas of the Rust Belt and central US use public police officers to be the dedicated security for local Walmarts. It's another example of Walmart cleverly subverting current law and putting the financial burden of their operations on the taxpayer. No other retailer navigates the legal end of their business like Walmart does.
Honestly, the shift in the retail market just reflects the shift in the economic standing of shoppers with Walmart obviously providing everything low income shoppers need and the financial services to support them.
I'm surprised local municipalities haven't pushed back harder against them. Entire areas of the Rust Belt and central US use public police officers to be the dedicated security for local Walmarts. It's another example of Walmart cleverly subverting current law and putting the financial burden of their operations on the taxpayer. No other retailer navigates the legal end of their business like Walmart does.
Walmart tried to set foot in Germany but gave up eventually. We have really strong competition in retail here with Aldi, Lidl, Metro group etc. I just read Aldi wants to increase its efforts in the US now. We will see how that'll go.
This is what is happening at my work. We are doing really well but the lack of employees is really stressing us out. They aren't offering very good incentives to new hires, and they only offer part time work to new people. Getting full time positions here is extremely difficult. Most positions are unionized, but the union is very weak. I haven't gotten a pay raise in 4 years.
Meanwhile corporate has no problem buying up one of our struggling competitors.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-jewel-buys-strack-van-til-0516-biz-20170515-story.html
Unknown Soldier
Member
Buy this:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Magic-Chef-5-2-cu-ft-Chest-Freezer-in-White-HMCF5W2/206174597
I have a lot of room to store frozen things from Costco now lol
Walmart opened in Germany in the end of the 90s, never made a profit, lost billions and then closed <10 years later.
Problems where the size of Walmart Germany, the culture, services not common in german supermarkets (packing bags, returning cars) generating extra costs and that the margin for supermarkets was a lot lower in germany than in the us.
therealist
Member
At some point you have to accept that people don't care about that stuff. Humanity is inherently selfish, you are asking people to behave in a way that they are not biologically designed to behave. It's a pipe dream.
You think Walmart is the best value for your money, but have you tried shopping around? Most of the competition in my area crushes them in prices, quality, and service.
All the time. I check the prices on amazon and sometimes ebay then buy it cheaper at walmart. Most of time I pick up at store because it's free.
Had one of these open up near my old work and I have no idea how you can make a store feel dirty and gross when it's brand new but they did it. I dreaded every time I had to go in there Their produce was low quality and half of the time I bought food that could be breakable (crackers, taco shells, cookies) they were always smashed into pieces. There was a few times where I would leave and then later find out that the food package was already open. You get what you pay for.
Empyrean Heaven
Member
A. Their groceries are usually the cheapest.
B. Anything else I get through Amazon where it's even cheaper.
I usually prefer ALDI (same prices but better quality) and BJs (bulk pricing + coupons = happy EH) but Walmart is fine in a pinch.
B. Anything else I get through Amazon where it's even cheaper.
I usually prefer ALDI (same prices but better quality) and BJs (bulk pricing + coupons = happy EH) but Walmart is fine in a pinch.
Cellbomber
Member
Wal-Mart has had a big push in urban areas as well. Several of the stores in DC you wouldn't even recognize as being a Wal-Mart from the outside. These are not the standalone big square box stores.
And LOL at people thinking only low income people are going. These stores are at the base of nice condo high rise apartments. Why jump on the train or in the car to go to Target when I can walk down the block to Wal-Mart and get the items quicker.
And LOL at people thinking only low income people are going. These stores are at the base of nice condo high rise apartments. Why jump on the train or in the car to go to Target when I can walk down the block to Wal-Mart and get the items quicker.
I don't even shop at Walmart all that much. I do more online shopping. My point wasn't about supporting Walmart.
Cosmo Clock 21
Banned
Pretty interesting pivot when Walmart's initial business model hinged on being the only superstore in highly rural areas.
hey_monkey
Banned
therealist
Member
(Today, 11:02 AM)
lulz.
But no, neither philosophy nor biology has proven after thousands of years that humanity is "inherently" selfish.
I am not against going to Walmart but I will never go out of way to go there. In most cases it's just more convenient to go to my neighbor grocery store and pay more and get my hygiene products at target. If poor people have to go there for budget reasons, then all power to them.
BassForever
Member
As someone who works at walm-mart half the reason for few cashiers is because no position has more turn over then cashiers. Every month my small store hires 3-4 new cashiers we'll be lucky if 1 remains at the end of the month. Cashiers also have a higher chance to call out since their hours are all over the place and due to walmarts very lenient pto and absence system people can get away with barely working for months. Combine that with the fact managers get a better bonus if walmart has high employee retention and you have a self fulfilling prophecy of not enough employees. It's a big part of the reason why they got rid of a lot of their higher paying office jobs and buffed up the size of their lower pay entry level positions like truck unloaded/stocker and cashiers since even if half of them call out they have enough staffing to "do a good enough job to not hurt sales".
I have to admit, Walmart's free grocery pick-up through online ordering is super convenient. Don't even need to step foot in the store, just drive up, park and they bring out all of your groceries to your car. It's great.
Link: https://grocery.walmart.com/
Link: https://grocery.walmart.com/
The other Walmart. Ok.