7 ms·

Author is delusional. A bunch of small stores close is nowhere near similar. I just want to go to one shop, get the stuff, and leave, not to go to 8 shops, pay

by ilyt 3y ago

Author is delusional. A bunch of small stores close is nowhere near similar. I just want to go to one shop, get the stuff, and leave, not to go to 8 shops, pay 8 times, pack groceries 8 times and overall walk more edit: that is not to say opening big supermarkets is great, just that once they are there that's why people skip local stores and go to the big supermarket

throwawaysleep 3y ago
Deal with 8 different potential return policies. Have 8 different conversations. Deal with whether all 8 take Amex or not.
- FrustratedMonky 3y ago
  So you are advocating for large monolithic monopolies? Reduce the complexity by reducing choice?
- freeopinion 3y ago
  Let different people shop at different stores depending on their preference for return policies or credit cards. Heh, let one store try to differentiate itself by accepting crypto payments. Or sell only products produced within 100 miles of the store. Or only employee people shorter than two meters. Just because there are 8 stores doesn't mean that everyone has to use all 8 of them. It does mean that anyone could use any of them. Sounds like a win to me.
  - freeopinion 3y ago
    I should point out that the presence of Walmart does not preclude the existence of seven other local stores. Walmart didn't drive all the moms and pops out of town with a shotgun. They competed on price, return policy, credit card choice, quality, and everything else. If the store that only employed people shorter than two meters left town, it was probably because that wasn't a priority to consumers in that town. In the end, consumers get to choose to support Walmart exclusively or to support a variety of businesses. Walmart doesn't get to make that choice. If you are unhappy with the outcome, is it right to blame Walmart?
  - johnnyanmac 3y ago
    >Let different people shop at different stores depending on their preference for return policies or credit cards. to be fair, the people did choose. I know it's out of vogue to blame the general populace for the actions of coporations, but at the end of the day corps can do this because it works. Every single time. Not sure if anything can be done, but I think it's also worth considering WHY people don't consider much past their immediate convenience when shopping.
light_hue_1 3y ago
Yeah. The 8 stores are far better. There's competition. There's variety. Employees can move around. I can get to know the shop owners. I can take a wonderful stroll. Instead. You get to enjoy one corporation, that does anything it wants, pays horribly, employees have no choice, you have no choice in what garbage you buy. And your downtown now consists of 8 banks. Yup. You're living the dream!
- throwawaysleep 3y ago
  Walmart was the competition that lowered prices. Those 8 stores may have had more variety, but not lower prices.
  - cagey 3y ago
    Recently I needed to replace my car's battery (size 24F; I opted to upgrade to an AGM battery). In my town of 45,000 (medium-small?) there is one Walmart superstore (sans auto shop), a bunch of chain auto parts stores, and some non-chain stores. Shopping online, I determine: Walmart: Everstart $180, 4 year "free replacement" warranty. Napa: house brand $250, Odyssey $371 (both 3 yr warranty) OReilly: house brand $250, Optima $290 (both 3 yr warranty) AutoZone: house brand $250, Optima $290 (both 3 yr warranty) Walmart gets my business in this case as it does in most others. The few employees I interact with there don't seem to be unhappy, and their return policy is awesome (and is consistently applied). Walmart hasn't forced the competition out of business, but I see no reason why I should shop elsewhere in order to pay $70 (38%) more for an equivalent battery with 1 year less warranty. Yes, Walmart is evil./s
- cykotic 3y ago
  And from a typically American perspective one doesn’t have to walk. They’ll even provide motorized carts to use when you are buying gallons of cola.
- moolcool 3y ago
  Not to mention that the product you get from dedicated merchants will invariably be better. The worst bakery in my city is leagues better than the best bread available at Wal Mart
FrustratedMonky 3y ago
I think the issue is more about the systematic destroying of the small town. They open multiple Walmart's, the small town stores go out of business, then they can close some percentage of the Walmart's to consolidate into a few stores in central locations, now all of the small town people have to drive farther to get anything at all. And the small town dies.
- notyourday 3y ago
  There's nothing great about small towns. All of this is waxing of people who don't live in small towns that think it is oh so nice to be able to go to a cute little store on vacation at 11:30am to get a muffin on Saturday. Never mind that the store itself is closed Monday to Friday.
  - User23 3y ago
    The DMV experience in a small town versus a big city is night and day in the small town’s favor. That’s true for pretty much all government services from the Post Office down to the County office. The main benefit of small towns is that social capital matters and reputation matters. Of course those are disadvantages to misbehavers.
    - gottorf 3y ago
      > social capital matters and reputation matters. Of course those are disadvantages to misbehavers. This is something that many young adults have forgotten, because it's increasingly more trendy to move around a lot in your 20s while developing your career. Nobody cares in a big city if you're an asshole, because there's a million other people to associate with and most likely the asshole and everyone around them aren't going to still be there in five years. The downside of the small town social setting is that it can be cliquey.
    - tstrimple 3y ago
      What?! This runs completely counter to my experience living in a small town. A town small enough that the post office doesn’t do to door delivery, you’ve got to go pick it up and the closest DMV is an hour away in the city. Small towns don’t generally have services like that at all.
SoftTalker 3y ago
The quaint downtown stores were also probably open from 9-5, maybe 9-12 on Saturday, closed Sunday. That was fine in the 1950s when housewives didn't work and could go shopping during the day. Today, nobody's going to want to take time off work to go buy bread, eggs, and socks. They want to go to Walmart on Sunday afternoon, or on their way home after work.
m_0x 3y ago
> overall walk more Walking more is better for your health. Or are you saying you walk too much already?
- ilyt 3y ago
  I'd rather spend time saved on bicycle, but I wasn't talking about myself but people that already spend 1-2h in commute and have kids so spending extra time on walking around shopping is probably the thing they want to do the least, hence they go to markets rather than local stores.
audunw 3y ago
Would you really be going to 8 shops every time though? Realistically I would go to a grocery store or supermarket and maybe one other store (like clothes or sports supplies, maybe a butcher or something if the town has that and I want something really special that week) I guess what Americans are missing from how smaller towns work in other countries is that they tend to be more dense, with more mixed zoning. Not as overfilled with way too big parking lots, way too wide “stroads”, and endless suburban sprawl. So the trip to town is shorter/faster, you go into town more often, for more different kinds of activities, and so you don’t have to buy everything all at once. Take a look at the Strong Town initiative and the YouTube channel “not just bikes”. Being in town - to me - is a part of living life. It’s where you’d have a third place, where you’d do various activities, meet people and discover new things. If you’ve felt the need to optimise your life to maximise your time at work and in your house.. that feels really sad to me.
- ilyt 3y ago
  > I guess what Americans are missing from how smaller towns work in other countries is that they tend to be more dense, with more mixed zoning. Not as overfilled with way too big parking lots, way too wide “stroads”, and endless suburban sprawl. So the trip to town is shorter/faster, you go into town more often, for more different kinds of activities, and so you don’t have to buy everything all at once. Well I'm not american and I lived in village and in small town. If I have supermarket in "range" I will go to supermarket, choice is bigger and prices are lower. Sure, if I have store nearby and want to get an icecream or something, or forgot to buy something on weekly shopping trip I'd buy it there. > Being in town - to me - is a part of living life. It’s where you’d have a third place, where you’d do various activities, meet people and discover new things. ...when going on grocery shopping ? And for some reason you're prevented from speaking to people in supermarket ? > If you’ve felt the need to optimise your life to maximise your time at work and in your house.. that feels really sad to me. I dunno from which arse you've got that conclusion. Do you have nothing more interesting to do in your life than going around shopping ? Groceries are chore not a fucking adventure, regardless of shop size. And saving money means I can spend it on things I actually enjoy and places I actually want to go to.
- johnnyanmac 3y ago
fantasticshower 3y ago
Part of me hates Walmart and part of me loves it. I love that I can go to one place and get 80% of whatever I'm looking for. But I also like the specialty stores my town has. N of one but since Walmart moved in ~20y ago I haven't noticed much changing with the makeup of small businesses. Since Walmart moved in there have been more of the other big box stores, though.

by ilyt 3y ago

throwawaysleep 3y ago

Deal with 8 different potential return policies. Have 8 different conversations. Deal with whether all 8 take Amex or not.

FrustratedMonky 3y ago
So you are advocating for large monolithic monopolies? Reduce the complexity by reducing choice?
freeopinion 3y ago
Let different people shop at different stores depending on their preference for return policies or credit cards. Heh, let one store try to differentiate itself by accepting crypto payments. Or sell only products produced within 100 miles of the store. Or only employee people shorter than two meters. Just because there are 8 stores doesn't mean that everyone has to use all 8 of them. It does mean that anyone could use any of them. Sounds like a win to me.
- freeopinion 3y ago
  I should point out that the presence of Walmart does not preclude the existence of seven other local stores. Walmart didn't drive all the moms and pops out of town with a shotgun. They competed on price, return policy, credit card choice, quality, and everything else. If the store that only employed people shorter than two meters left town, it was probably because that wasn't a priority to consumers in that town. In the end, consumers get to choose to support Walmart exclusively or to support a variety of businesses. Walmart doesn't get to make that choice. If you are unhappy with the outcome, is it right to blame Walmart?
- johnnyanmac 3y ago
  >Let different people shop at different stores depending on their preference for return policies or credit cards. to be fair, the people did choose. I know it's out of vogue to blame the general populace for the actions of coporations, but at the end of the day corps can do this because it works. Every single time. Not sure if anything can be done, but I think it's also worth considering WHY people don't consider much past their immediate convenience when shopping.

light_hue_1 3y ago

Yeah. The 8 stores are far better. There's competition. There's variety. Employees can move around. I can get to know the shop owners. I can take a wonderful stroll. Instead. You get to enjoy one corporation, that does anything it wants, pays horribly, employees have no choice, you have no choice in what garbage you buy. And your downtown now consists of 8 banks. Yup. You're living the dream!

throwawaysleep 3y ago
Walmart was the competition that lowered prices. Those 8 stores may have had more variety, but not lower prices.
- cagey 3y ago
  Recently I needed to replace my car's battery (size 24F; I opted to upgrade to an AGM battery). In my town of 45,000 (medium-small?) there is one Walmart superstore (sans auto shop), a bunch of chain auto parts stores, and some non-chain stores. Shopping online, I determine: Walmart: Everstart $180, 4 year "free replacement" warranty. Napa: house brand $250, Odyssey $371 (both 3 yr warranty) OReilly: house brand $250, Optima $290 (both 3 yr warranty) AutoZone: house brand $250, Optima $290 (both 3 yr warranty) Walmart gets my business in this case as it does in most others. The few employees I interact with there don't seem to be unhappy, and their return policy is awesome (and is consistently applied). Walmart hasn't forced the competition out of business, but I see no reason why I should shop elsewhere in order to pay $70 (38%) more for an equivalent battery with 1 year less warranty. Yes, Walmart is evil./s
cykotic 3y ago
And from a typically American perspective one doesn’t have to walk. They’ll even provide motorized carts to use when you are buying gallons of cola.
moolcool 3y ago
Not to mention that the product you get from dedicated merchants will invariably be better. The worst bakery in my city is leagues better than the best bread available at Wal Mart

FrustratedMonky 3y ago

I think the issue is more about the systematic destroying of the small town. They open multiple Walmart's, the small town stores go out of business, then they can close some percentage of the Walmart's to consolidate into a few stores in central locations, now all of the small town people have to drive farther to get anything at all. And the small town dies.

notyourday 3y ago
There's nothing great about small towns. All of this is waxing of people who don't live in small towns that think it is oh so nice to be able to go to a cute little store on vacation at 11:30am to get a muffin on Saturday. Never mind that the store itself is closed Monday to Friday.
- User23 3y ago
  The DMV experience in a small town versus a big city is night and day in the small town’s favor. That’s true for pretty much all government services from the Post Office down to the County office. The main benefit of small towns is that social capital matters and reputation matters. Of course those are disadvantages to misbehavers.
  - gottorf 3y ago
    > social capital matters and reputation matters. Of course those are disadvantages to misbehavers. This is something that many young adults have forgotten, because it's increasingly more trendy to move around a lot in your 20s while developing your career. Nobody cares in a big city if you're an asshole, because there's a million other people to associate with and most likely the asshole and everyone around them aren't going to still be there in five years. The downside of the small town social setting is that it can be cliquey.
  - tstrimple 3y ago
    What?! This runs completely counter to my experience living in a small town. A town small enough that the post office doesn’t do to door delivery, you’ve got to go pick it up and the closest DMV is an hour away in the city. Small towns don’t generally have services like that at all.

SoftTalker 3y ago

The quaint downtown stores were also probably open from 9-5, maybe 9-12 on Saturday, closed Sunday. That was fine in the 1950s when housewives didn't work and could go shopping during the day. Today, nobody's going to want to take time off work to go buy bread, eggs, and socks. They want to go to Walmart on Sunday afternoon, or on their way home after work.

m_0x 3y ago

> overall walk more Walking more is better for your health. Or are you saying you walk too much already?

ilyt 3y ago
I'd rather spend time saved on bicycle, but I wasn't talking about myself but people that already spend 1-2h in commute and have kids so spending extra time on walking around shopping is probably the thing they want to do the least, hence they go to markets rather than local stores.

audunw 3y ago

Would you really be going to 8 shops every time though? Realistically I would go to a grocery store or supermarket and maybe one other store (like clothes or sports supplies, maybe a butcher or something if the town has that and I want something really special that week) I guess what Americans are missing from how smaller towns work in other countries is that they tend to be more dense, with more mixed zoning. Not as overfilled with way too big parking lots, way too wide “stroads”, and endless suburban sprawl. So the trip to town is shorter/faster, you go into town more often, for more different kinds of activities, and so you don’t have to buy everything all at once. Take a look at the Strong Town initiative and the YouTube channel “not just bikes”. Being in town - to me - is a part of living life. It’s where you’d have a third place, where you’d do various activities, meet people and discover new things. If you’ve felt the need to optimise your life to maximise your time at work and in your house.. that feels really sad to me.

ilyt 3y ago
> I guess what Americans are missing from how smaller towns work in other countries is that they tend to be more dense, with more mixed zoning. Not as overfilled with way too big parking lots, way too wide “stroads”, and endless suburban sprawl. So the trip to town is shorter/faster, you go into town more often, for more different kinds of activities, and so you don’t have to buy everything all at once. Well I'm not american and I lived in village and in small town. If I have supermarket in "range" I will go to supermarket, choice is bigger and prices are lower. Sure, if I have store nearby and want to get an icecream or something, or forgot to buy something on weekly shopping trip I'd buy it there. > Being in town - to me - is a part of living life. It’s where you’d have a third place, where you’d do various activities, meet people and discover new things. ...when going on grocery shopping ? And for some reason you're prevented from speaking to people in supermarket ? > If you’ve felt the need to optimise your life to maximise your time at work and in your house.. that feels really sad to me. I dunno from which arse you've got that conclusion. Do you have nothing more interesting to do in your life than going around shopping ? Groceries are chore not a fucking adventure, regardless of shop size. And saving money means I can spend it on things I actually enjoy and places I actually want to go to.
johnnyanmac 3y ago

fantasticshower 3y ago

Part of me hates Walmart and part of me loves it. I love that I can go to one place and get 80% of whatever I'm looking for. But I also like the specialty stores my town has. N of one but since Walmart moved in ~20y ago I haven't noticed much changing with the makeup of small businesses. Since Walmart moved in there have been more of the other big box stores, though.