Something's wrong with Walmart

[ImpulsE69]

Sadly wal-mart is the only place to shop at near me. There are 3 of them within 20 miles, but not another type of dept store for an hour....

 

[Slew Foot]

Havent stepped foot in a Walmart in years. And I dont plan to in the future either

 

[BudAshes]

Not having to shop at walmart is a great reason not to be poor.

 

[tcsenter]

Yep, saw that Bloomberg article about Warlmart's shelves going bare and staffing down to skeleton crew. That's the way it has been trending around here for about two or three years now, in three different locations about 15 or 20 miles apart. The bare shelves are especially bad the day after people get their welfare, social security, and food stamp cards reloaded, like the middle and beginning of the month (or whatever the dates are).

But its not just the welfare and social security customers. There are certain items that will just be repeatedly OOS which aren't your typical things that people buy in quantity or stock-up on, as if Walmart just isn't ordering enough of it.

Walmart made a fan and loyal customer of me in the early 90s. I've been to Walmart locations in probably six or seven states, and was always pleased with the experience. It was like McDonald's in a sense, very consistent customer experience from one location to another - from one state to another - in terms of cleanliness, well organized aisles, tidy shelves or product displays, product selection, and adequate staffing.

But if this shit keeps up, I'm going to Target or Costco. There has been a real change in the past three years and if the same complaints are being lodged about multiple locations in multiple states, that can only mean its coming from corporate and not from any incompetence on the part of individual store management.

 

[OCGuy]

Not having to shop at walmart is a great reason not to be poor.

This. Ahhhhh upper-middle.....sweet, sweet upper-middle.....

 

[BoomerD]

I don't like Wal-Mart...never have...but I DO shop for a select few things there, solely because they're significantly cheaper on those items.
They might get $100 every couple of months...but that's it.

Surprising to me, Fred Meyer's has gone down hill from what I remember it in the 80's. I don't know if there was a change in ownership, a big management change, or what, but Freddies USED to be decent...nowadays, it's Wal-Mart quality or lower.

 

[lxskllr]

The Walmart near me is expensive, with a mediocre selection. I go there rarely. When I do, it's because it's close; I can walk to it. I feel like a sellout piece of shit going to that store though...

 

[Sepen]

I try not to go to Walmart, I will try Target first. I even have gone to Walgreen instead of Walmart. The place is a disaster, empty shelves, no employees to be seen and if you do see them you wish to yourself that they would disappear.

 

[WelshBloke]

Anyone here lived in the US and the UK?

What would the American versions of Waitrose and Sainsburys be?

 

[desura]

I don't want to know where you're from do I?

I stand by that statement. Target does have better clothes I guess, except I don't buy clothes at either. Walmart overall has better selection and prices than Target. It has everything from pets to tools to like Sriracha sauce (best price on that in the region) and like whenever I buy something from Target I'll end up getting annoyed because usually wandering through Walmart or Amazon I'll find the same thing for cheaper.

In my shopping list, the only place where Target has Walmart beat is in their bagged whole bean coffee.

I kind of don't care that Target is more pleasant to shop at. I just go to get what I need and then leave. Whatever.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

I'm not typical ATOT rich, but a little bit?? I save A SHIT TON shopping at Walmart. I get twice as much natural PB for the same price at Walmart as opposed to Target. I would say I easily save 30% shopping there, maybe 30%'s "a little" to you, but to me that's enough to make me trek to Wally's World. Also the selection isn't even close, Target has a fraction of the items, and sells them at much higher prices.

I save compared to Walmart sometimes significantly by shopping at Costco. Costco doesn't carry shit brands either. Even the Costco store brand Kirkland is quality stuff. After I'm done shopping it's nice to grab something from their dirt cheap store restaurant.

 

[chin311]

I avoid our local Wal-Mart except for when I need to get some oil.

There's a Target next door, much nicer. 5% off.

 

[BUTCH1]

I avoid our local Wal-Mart except for when I need to get some oil.

There's a Target next door, much nicer. 5% off.

I noticed that too, I did an oil change with oil I bought from Advance then a few days later I was in Wal-mart and noticed the same oil for $1.35/qt cheaper,that's where I buy my oil from now. The one near me isn't that bad, at one time you had to wait 8-9 people deep to check out but they hired more cashiers so it's better now, I guess it's a YMMV situation depending on which store you shop at.

 

[desura]

So anyways,

The purpose of this thread is that I think it might be smart to short Walmart stock.

The reason is that, visiting the stores I am detecting their operations are slipping. Eventually this will be reflected in the stock price.

 

[natto fire]

I never shop at Walmart, and never want to step foot in the place again. The only time I've ever bought anything there was in '04 when I needed a dvd player at 11pm, and even then it was a pretty miserable experience. The place looked like shit, and their merchandise was all low-end crap.

While I dislike Wal-Mart just as much as any responsible person, I have been to a lot of different ones all over the midwest for different things. You went to one at 11pm for a very specific item and then made a blanket statement like you knew Wal-Mart up and down. You can't brag about not shopping there and also comment on the quality of the merchandise or the cleanliness of the store, IMO.

 

[Mixolydian]

Not having to shop at walmart is a great reason not to be poor.

This. Ahhhhh upper-middle.....sweet, sweet upper-middle.....

Feels good man.

 

[waggy]

I can afford to shop elsewhere. but for a good portion of what we get its cheaper to shop at walmart.

there are some rules i have though:

1) DO not go on the 1st or the 15th. just don't do it in fact give it a day or two after (usually food stamp and welfare days).

2) DO not go from 5-9 or saturday and sunday.

3) IF going go early morning. the store seems to only have house mothers or old people. also the shelves are stocked.

4) stay the fuck away from the "fresh" meat, veggies and fruit! they suck ass.

 

[Mixolydian]

2) DO not go from 5-9 or saturday and sunday.

Around here, do not shop ANYWHERE at all on Saturday or Sunday. Especially places like Costco. So fucking crowded with idiots and their kids, it's unbelievable.

 

[WilliamM2]

The Walmart in my town is just fine. Always clean, shelves stocked, and checkout lines no worse than Target or any other store. I avoid Kmart and Target. Neither has much selection, lousy prices, and I don't think the Kmart here has been re-done in over 20 years, looks like a slum.

I'm not rich, but even if I were, why would I pay more for the same thing elsewhere? Nothing wrong with smart shopping, it's one of the things that allowed me to pay off my house before age 45, buy new cars with cash, and still have a large savings account. And I make right around the median income. I'll leave being a snob to the over-extended rich folk.

 

[BUTCH1]

I can afford to shop elsewhere. but for a good portion of what we get its cheaper to shop at walmart.

there are some rules i have though:

1) DO not go on the 1st or the 15th. just don't do it in fact give it a day or two after (usually food stamp and welfare days).

2) DO not go from 5-9 or saturday and sunday.

3) IF going go early morning. the store seems to only have house mothers or old people. also the shelves are stocked.

4) stay the fuck away from the "fresh" meat, veggies and fruit! they suck ass.

What?, a Washington apple is the same from Publix or Walmart, head of lettuce?, same, from California. Just look at it and see if it's fresh or check the date code on the package, a "Fresh express" or "Dole" salad mix is the same no matter where you buy it, as long as it's stored at the correct temperature that is..

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

The Walmart in my town is just fine. Always clean, shelves stocked, and checkout lines no worse than Target or any other store. I avoid Kmart and Target. Neither has much selection, lousy prices, and I don't think the Kmart here has been re-done in over 20 years, looks like a slum.

I'm not rich, but even if I were, why would I pay more for the same thing elsewhere? Nothing wrong with smart shopping, it's one of the things that allowed me to pay off my house before age 45, buy new cars with cash, and still have a large savings account. And I make right around the median income. I'll leave being a snob to the over-extended rich folk.

I pay less at Costco while avoiding the trash that occupy wal mart. Even if I lost a little that'd be fine as I wouldn't be supporting the slave wages shit benefits that wal mart gives.

Just like I'll opt for the nicer hotel or living in a nicer area to avoid trash. A few dollars here or there is fine by me.

 

[desura]

I can afford to shop elsewhere. but for a good portion of what we get its cheaper to shop at walmart.

there are some rules i have though:

1) DO not go on the 1st or the 15th. just don't do it in fact give it a day or two after (usually food stamp and welfare days).

2) DO not go from 5-9 or saturday and sunday.

3) IF going go early morning. the store seems to only have house mothers or old people. also the shelves are stocked.

4) stay the fuck away from the "fresh" meat, veggies and fruit! they suck ass.

Huh, I never thought about it this way before. I tend to go there...5-9 at night

 

[Leros]

You can argue about the quality and price of merchandise but I don't shop at Walmart because you're going to waste 20-30 minutes waiting to check out (even self checkout). They never have enough registers open and the cashiers are slow.

 

[WilliamM2]

I pay less at Costco while avoiding the trash that occupy wal mart. Even if I lost a little that'd be fine as I wouldn't be supporting the slave wages shit benefits that wal mart gives.

Just like I'll opt for the nicer hotel or living in a nicer area to avoid trash. A few dollars here or there is fine by me.

I'd give Costco a shot, if it weren't 135 miles to the nearest one. But I'd rather live here in a nice area, than in some larger city. Probably why our Walmart has no more trash than any other local store.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Anyone else notice Walmart slipping? I mean, in the past they've often impressed me with quality and price, and in my visit I was pretty impressed seeing a $6.88 folding lawn chair, but I get the feeling that they're simply not executing as expertly as they did in the past.

You get what you pay for. Walmart sells junk.