Walmart...

[deeder7001]

Nuff said.

[swingdjted]

The last time I spent my own money there was in 2001.

I had gift cards for there after a baby shower, but I sold them at a $2 loss each, just so I didn't have to go in there.

I hate that business with a passion.



I don't mind a business becoming successful, but just think of how many century-old stores that were annihilated for each dot created.

[deeder7001]

They opened in Merced which is a good thing because NOBODY was hiring. I only work for them because they hired me.

[Wildrose-Wally]

To make at Walmart what I make now I'd have to be in a top management position. So....are you making anything over the minimum wage?

[deeder7001]

$9.80/hr Overnight cashier.

[rockouthippie]

I don't mind a business becoming successful, but just think of how many century-old stores that were annihilated for each dot created.

I think those "old stores" were dying anyway. They put one in about 8 miles from here. It is fairly new. The city dragged feet for years to keep them out. In the end though, the "old stores" were toast and went out of business even before they built the Walmart.

Even without Walmart, there are a lot of ways to buy whatever you want at wholesale. This was the problem with Best Buy. They ended up being the showroom for Amazon. The idea that you can mark up retail products very much is over.

[Wildrose-Wally]

Originally Posted by rockouthippie

The idea that you can mark up retail products very much is over.

Last Christmas at our company's Christmas party I won a car starter. The company had bought it at cost at the Future Shop (a Best Buy company) for $50.00, retail price $260.00.

[sgtfuzzbubble011]

I actually have two separate viewpoints of disdain for Walmart. First, as a customer, they NEVER EVER EVER have enough registers open! Damnit, hire some more cashiers! I shouldn't have to wait in line for 30 minutes while my ice cream melts and milk gets warm just because only TWO of the THIRTY-TWO lanes you have are actually open. And you can take those self-check-out registers and shove 'em.

Secondly, as a contract technician for Sensormatic, I find it extremely irritating when I have to wait around for AN HOUR for a manager to actually come up front to talk to me. It's not like I magically know which camera needs to be adjusted. No, I don't know where your staff put the roll of cable that was shipped in. That's why I need you to actually come talk to me. And good grief, I don't remember the last time I worked in a Walmart when the Loss Prevention associate was actually there. What good are all those 120+ cameras going to do if there's no LP in the store?

[deeder7001]

Originally Posted by sgtfuzzbubble99

And you can take those self-check-out registers and shove 'em.

I run those pieces of crap every Friday and Saturday night. I ALWAYS get one customer that complains about it and proceeds to tell me HEB is better. I'm thinking the whole time "why the FUCK are you here then you moron? Get your shit and get out and go to HEB". They break down a lot. I HATE self check out. I'm always wondering where the other cashiers are and I work there... What the fuck?

[SeattleJeremy]

Yea, I'm not a fan of Walmart.
But I need to get my post count up enough to change my user CP.

[Wildrose-Wally]

Originally Posted by SeattleJeremy

Yea, I'm not a fan of Walmart.
But I need to get my post count up enough to change my user CP.

Postpumping is not the way to get your count up, moderators would likely reduce your count.
This is the actual rule:

Post Pumping
- If a post is suspected to serve no other purpose than to increase the post count of the poster, then the moderators may, at their discretion, issue a PM to the member in question enquiring about the nature of the post. Posts/Threads that are blatantly post pumping will be removed/locked without recourse to the poster.

[rockouthippie]

A mom and pop can't adjust a perpetual inventory as accurately as a big box. Walmart knows exactly what the public will buy before they order it from the manufacturer.

You can't beat that with a mom and pop. A mom and pop eats too much devalued inventory to survive. It's why Walmart has such good prices. It's never sitting on inventory. It's priced to move it.

So... if ya wanna be a mom and pop, you gotta either sell specialty merchandise or be a value added reseller.

A good example is our local bike shop. You can buy the same Chinese parts and make your own bike for a couple hundred less than the bike shop, but those guys will put it together right. It'll have some upgraded parts from what you buy at Walmart. But it's not practical to wholesale dump a bunch like at Walmart.

There is still room for the mom and pop store. People are just gonna have to get a little creative. One example is our old clothier/tailor store in old town. Now they sell varsity jackets. Really, really nice varsity jackets.... so it's a living.... The family has been running a business there for 60 years. It still works. You just gotta get a little creative.

Walmart's thing is prices, and I look around at the employees sometimes and think they look like someone killed their dog. If they called me a "team member" it would probably only remind me that if they could pay me any less or treat me any worse, they probably would.

All that chirpy, upbeat horseshit in lieu of a livable wage is about enough to make a guy choke.

[swingdjted]

Just remember that although all this hype about elections is going on, your real vote comes when you open your wallet and pay for something. Voting at elections may influence your life a miniscule amount at best, but when you buy something, you're supporting something in a way that far exceeds the support given by a vote. If you don't like something, the best way to fight against it is to make sure they're not getting any of your money, or as little as possible if unaviodable. That's why Wal*Mart hasn't received a penny of my family's money since 2001 and won't in the future either.

[swingdjted]

FFS...

Wal*Mart and others like it are starting their "Black Friday" on Thanksgiving Day. It's bad enough that people from the service sector have trouble getting their schedules to line up for quality time together with their families, and now they're either forced to work or lured into shopping instead of finally enjoying some time home together. It's truly disgusting. It's a way to reduce Black Friday competition while ensuring the "big deals" are available when more people are off work. You know what? There are more fucking important things in life than massive corporate profits. The sad thing is that I fear that these words will likely fall mostly on deaf ears. If for some lucky reason, you agree, please fight this by not spending a penny at these places, especially on Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday, and save some money for something more important, like a bite to eat and a sip to drink with family and friends.

[Wildrose-Wally]

It is exactly those stores that forced everyone to open on Sundays. No matter what your religion is, it was nice for the family to be together at least one day of the week.

[swingdjted]

Yeah, I don't really subscribe to a specific religion anymore, but I still agree with a lot of what many religions teach, in this case, having at least a day per week when work schedules can line up to allow a gathering of people close to you such as family or friends.

[rockouthippie]

I've missed a lot of holidays working retail stores, but the thing is, not only is it the time of year your employers make bank, it's the time of year you make bank too. I used to make about $20 an hour, but that's 10 now.... but you won't spend any time learning your products like you used to. It's more or less self serve.

I think the argument about Walmart is ten years ago. First, your customer doesn't need the kind of product support they used to. The internet sort of tells people what they want to buy and how to use it. You don't need a salesperson and nobody wanted to pay for what they don't need.

If it wasn't called Walmart, it would be called something else, but it meets what consumers want so one way or another... it's a big box.

If I don't go to Walmart, I could go to another box where they treat their employees as bad. Even Costco only pays $13. Food Warehouse? Target? You used to be able to distinguish those companies from Walmart, but not much anymore.

I guess I could go along with your thinking and patronize businesses that pay a living wage.... if any existed... The unions are all gone unless you shop at Safeway. I remember making $16 an hour being a union grocery checker in the 80's. That's about what it still pays.

You might want to blame Walmart for low wages, but what the real problem is is the cost of employment, which has doubled since I started working.

[deeder7001]

Originally Posted by rockouthippie

First, your customer doesn't need the kind of product support they used to. The internet sort of tells people what they want to buy and how to use it. You don't need a salesperson and nobody wanted to pay for what they don't need.

You would think the customer doesn't need product support any more. I like to know what I'm selling at least somewhat. It helps me sell and get the customer what they want for the most part. I try to help the customer save as much as possible even if that means I don't make a sell myself. I like to have smiling customers as much as possible. A happy customer is more likely to return and buy again(in my short experience at least).

[swingdjted]

I worked at Sears for a couple summers between school years teaching ('00-'02). I sold appliances for commission (sadly a pretty boring job; the clock seemed to tick more slowly then than any other time of my life). Sears was one of the last "big box"es as you call them that had true training and customer service. I was required to wear a tie and I was tested weekly on product knowledge. I think they still do it. I wasn't really paid a rate; I was paid commission. More sales=more in my paycheck. If a commissioned employee had a horrible pair of weeks, he/she was guaranteed $6 per hour minimum when the minimum wage was $5.15, but nobody really needed that safety net as we were in a location that easily kept the merchandise moving. We usually averaged $15 or more per hour, which was reasonably decent money for a mostly easy job. I hated when they kept making me push for their bullshit maintenance agreements though. I never really felt they were a wise investment. It was more or less free money for Sears.

Avoiding "big box" businesses is harder and harder every year. I honestly try to as much as possible, and I live where it's easier to do than other places, as most of them have found that our location doesn't fit their idea of a profitable spot. Wal*Mart is here though, and that really sucks. I still don't shop there.

[rockouthippie]

We live in a world where everyone is the enemy. It's just simpler to paint everyone as some kind of demon. Your honest salesman who really does care. He's a demon. Everyone is a bigot. Everyone wants to hurt you. Everyone should be properly punished.

[swingdjted]

Amen. Let's buy fully-automatic paintball guns with each paint ball filled with diarrhea and take on the world!

[deeder7001]

Originally Posted by swingdjted

Amen. Let's buy fully-automatic paintball guns with each paint ball filled with diarrhea and take on the world!

I'm down!!

[sgtfuzzbubble011]

That sounds absolutely horrific.

[swingdjted]

6 Walmart Heirs Hold More Wealth Than 42% of Americans Combined.

source

Also,

[swingdjted]

Even when you win, you lose.

I've never done Netflix anyway, always upset at how many jobs they took away.

^less than $1.00 is what you get even if you have what it takes to prove they're full of shit.