Enormous selection, and economies of scale (massive purchasing & warehousing ops reducing costs, lower cost/sqft of store area, etc.) are also reasons that Walm

Enormous selection, and economies of scale (massive purchasing & warehousing ops reducing costs, lower cost/sqft of store area, etc.) are also reasons that Walmart, Dollar General, etc. can out-compete local stores. It is not only lower labor costs. And they are clearly willing to spend on the appearance of customer service, paying 'extra' people to be greeters, etc. Viewing it as if the people who produce your products and services are a mere cost instead of an asset is stupid. And, just because a lot of "successful" finance types implement this view, dies not mean that they are also not stupid. Oversimplifying is not a solution to most problems.