- People are cutting back on everything they don't HAVE to have
- People are trying hard to save money on the things they do need
Copyright © 2010 by The Atlantic Monthly Group. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2010 by The Atlantic Monthly Group. All rights reserved.
Humans are social creatures. In boom times we consume together, and reinforce consumption ("cool new car!"). In down cycles we save together ("let's bring lunches to work!").
I imagine that some of those new Wal-Mart shoppers are part of the trend, rather than people who really need savings.
(Amex downgrades those at their own risk.)
Indeed, recessions often add relative strength to the strongest in any business sector- they always have more room to cut prices and costs than their weaker competitors. Walmart will come out of this even stronger than before.
I've always loved Walmart. For 4 years when I was by a super Walmart that was pretty much the only place I shopped for groceries and misc supplies unless there was a very specific item I needed that they didn't have (which was pretty rare).
But their clothing section really sucks. It amazes me. If there is one area where Walmart can improve it is in clothing. It shouldn't be too hard with all the style brands coming out of China like everything else Walmart gets. Maybe they just need to fire their clothing buyers/designers.
Stop! Walmart is the only place in the frozen North where I can buy Dickies khakis, God's work pants.
On a similar note, the 99 Cents Only chain was planning on pulling out of Houston, but issued a press release last week stating that they had reconsidered in light of an uptick in sales. When folks can no longer afford Macy's they go to Wallmart, and when they can no longer afford Wallmart, they go to 99 Cents Only...
Wal-Mart is successful? Uh oh...time to punish them for offering superior value to cash-strapped consumers. After all, we only want prostrate and submissive zombie corporations like GM, not self-reliant profit-makers that we can't boss around!
Heaven forbid - those horrific market forces collude to get the helpless American populace to buy their box o' Tide at WalMart at a price cheaper than most other stores? What new hell has been wished upon us?
I realize WM is in a position vis-a-vis their suppliers that puts the supplier pretty much at a large disadvantage in terms of discussing price, but WM isn't forcing anyone to shop at their stores. People go there when they think they will save a few bucks, or even a lot of bucks, and that makes a difference when you're treating every dollar in your bank account like the valuable commodity it is. People buying more WM goods is a bonus for our economy, whether the economy is up or down.
@sam: they tried improving their clothing selection a few years back, but it didn't do much for them. Part of it was problems with execution (putting urbanwear on the racks in small towns, for example), but it was mostly just that people weren't interested in buying more stylish clothing there -- they preferred to get it elsewhere, if they cared at all.
Used to be that "shopping" meant that one visited a few stores, walked up and down the aisles picking up things and putting them, until they found something that they thought might fit their needs or wants. This is still the way it works for clothing, except work clothes. Now, one researches on line or by visiting WM's competitors and talking to their sales persons. Then, when someone has decided what to buy, they head straight to WM, which they can be assured has the lowest price for the item and where they will not be hassled by a commissioned sales person trying to talk them into something more expensive. It is that simple. WM's biggest threat is Amazon. Wait until the masses discover free shipping and not having to get in the car and drive to the local WalMart.