Open the f-ing lanes!!!

[PseudoChef]

Why do they build Wal-Marts/Krogers/Targets/Home Depots with 15 check out lanes but you're not going to open more than 4 on the freakin' weekend? Idiots.

 

[SuperiorBrew]

Why do they build Wal-Marts/Krogers/Targets/Home Depots with 15 check out lanes but you're not going to open more than 4 on the freakin' weekend? Idiots.

Our Wal-Mart has 2 greeters at every freakin door but never any checkers. I let SWMBO get stuff from there, I hate the joint & only go when I am desperate once or twice a year.

 

[PseudoChef]

Our Wal-Mart has 2 greeters at every freakin door but never any checkers. I let SWMBO get stuff from there, I hate the joint & only go when I am desperate once or twice a year.

I am lucky in the Wal-Mart sense. I almost never go there and this thread wasn't inspired by that store, but I've seen it happen when I do happen to stop in.

I can walk to my Kroger and Target is closer than Wal-Mart for everything else.

Mainly Kroger...I am starting to have some serious qualms with this company.

 

[Bytor1100]

They build all those aisles for when the end of the world comes, everyone can get through quickly.

 

[Ryanh1801]

Our wal mart is the same way.. It annoys the hell out of me... Just last week I ended up walking out, cause I was in line for 30 min. and still was 6 people back. What pisses me off even more is the self check outs, I wont even get into how I feel about those.

 

[AFAJ Brew Guy]

I think our walmart is a freak of nature, well most of them are anyway, but ours is just weird. Whenever I am in there to get diapers or spring water, the cashiers pretty much fight over who gets to help you. The one here is town in the only one like that, that I have ever been in. It is like walmart in the twilight zone.

 

[PeteOz77]

My guess would be that it would take too HUGE of a bite out of the profits to have a Part Time/Minimum Wage/No Benefits... employee on another register for peak hours on a weekend. I mean seriously, it's only good business to get by with as little staff as possible. Why should they spend another $50 on wages, when you are going to HAVE to stand in line. You don't have any choice in the smaller towns, because WalMart has DESTROYED the locals With Predatory pricing and business tactic.

You'll stand in line... and you'll LIKE it, because you needed to save 80¢ on that 12 roll pack of toilet paper, and $2 on these diapers.

Sorry, but I never feel sorry for people that complain about bad service from these MONSTERS. You shop there, you justify their predatory tactics, and you helped force the little competitors go out of business. Now you reap what you have sown

I know that sounds harsh, but these places are in existence solely to make as much money as possible and the local economy, customers, employees etc be damned!

Check out "Wall Mart, the high cost of low prices"

 

[dibby33]

I just leave the trolley if I have to wait too long. Frozen food on the top. Just walk up to the front desk, ask if they are going to open more lanes. If not, then I just walk out of the shop. Feck'm.

 

[zoebisch01]

Walmart. Don't get me started. Just one more reason NOT to shop there. Anytime I can, local business where I can actually talk to a person that knows what they are doing and has an interest in my community gets my money.

 

[VatorMan]

Haha you went to Wal-Mart.

 

[Evan!]

Pete, capitalism is capitalism, regardless of whether its a mom-n-pop shop or a WalMart. You think Mom n Pop opened that hardware store out of the goodness of their heart? No, they needed to make a living. I'm sick and tired of this idea that WalMart is pure evil while mom-n-pop local shops are the embodiment of angelic hometown goodness. You know how many poor folks save money by shopping at walmart rather than the local shop that charges twice as much (because they have to)?

The tradeoff here is obvious: WalMart is open 24/7 and has pretty much everything at one store (esp. if it's a Super WalMart). Sure, you might have to wait in line longer, but it's open whenever you need something. I defy you to show me a local mom-n-pop shop that carries watch batteries, car tires and cabbage and is open at 3:30am.

I do agree that it makes no sense to install 10 checkout lanes if no more than 2 of them are ever open, even at the busiest time. This is exactly why we need more self-checkout lanes. Some are better than others, but when done right, they are awesome. Sure, you can still have the manned lanes for the old ladies who don't know how to use a calculator much less a self-checkout machine, but for the rest of us, it makes perfect sense....when executed correctly.

Oh, and the "documentary" you linked to---talk about cherry-picking facts and misrepresenting basic economics. Wow!

 

[MikeFlynn74]

Anyone who shops at walmart needs to check to see if they still have their soul.

 

[aekdbbop]

i think its worse that when i go to lowes, i have to park wayyy in the back because the first 45 lots are handicapped..

i have never seen more than person there that is handicapped.. and i used to work there!

 

[aekdbbop]

Anyone who shops at walmart needs to check to see if they still have their soul.

yep, still there.. and so is most of my money!

 

[MikeFlynn74]

No, they needed to make a living. I'm sick and tired of this idea that WalMart is pure evil while mom-n-pop local shops are the embodiment of angelic hometown goodness.

You forgot the part about where they send a bulk of their money to China- They lower the standard of living wherever they are by under paying and over working people. Along with substandard benefits and destroying American companies- Sure they are fine.

Read http://www.fastcompany.com/node/47593/print

They also destroyed the Huffy corp too.

 

[PseudoChef]

Haha you went to Wal-Mart.

No, I didn't. RTP.

 

[Ryanh1801]

Anyone who shops at walmart needs to check to see if they still have their soul.

nope not their.. I shop their because, well im a cheap ass/ poor college student and it cost me 20 bucks less to shop there per week. At krogers it cost me about 60 bucks per week, at walmart I can get all I need for 40.

 

[rabidgerbil]

I can not talk to the issue of Wal-Mart, or some of the others, but I do know a thing or two about Kroger, having worked for one of their divisions for almost 15 years. You schedule your help based upon a system that takes into account your average hourly sales for the time period that you are scheduling for. If you have averaged X dollars in sales, over the past six weeks, for the time period between 6 and 7 pm on a Friday night, and the system tells you that for X dollars in sales, you need to have 2 checkers available, then you have 2 checkers available, regardless of how many lanes you have.

The ultimate for this, for those of us that have them around, is Frys Electronics stores. The one here in Renton, Wa, has 64 cash registers, yes, I really did mean to say 64. On a normal day, only about 10 of those are open. On the day after Thanksgiving, all 64 are running, and the lines are still backed up to the back of the building.

You build for your worst case scenarios, but you staff for your average scenario. The problem is, with the extremely tight profit margin in the retail grocery industry, especially with competition from companies like Wal-Mart that undercut everyone else through any means necessary, the rest of the grocery companies are having to find ways to cut their costs, and the one big one that always comes to mind is labor.

 

[Liquidicem]

I grew up working in retail and there is one reason that there are so many lanes. There are there for one time of year, Christmas. The lanes are open and staffed by temporary employees from Thanksgiving until Christmas. The rest of the year it just doesn't make business sense to keep them staffed.

 

[Evan!]

You forgot the part about where they send a bulk of their money to China- They lower the standard of living wherever they are by under paying and over working people. Along with substandard benefits and destroying American companies- Sure they are fine.

Read http://www.fastcompany.com/node/47593/print

They also destroyed the Huffy corp too.

They lower the standards of living by under-paying and over-working people? Unless they're forcing people to work there, I'd say that anyone who works there is doing so voluntarily. If you don't like capitalism, fine, but just come out and say it. Or maybe you're a fair-weather capitalist, and just support it when it produces results that you like.

My main beef with WalMart is not how they treat their workers---because those workers are free to work elsewhere---but instead with how they use their clout to blackmail and coerce local, state and federal govt's into giving them special breaks and developing the land for their stores on the taxpayer dollar, etc.,etc. Of course, this is as much a problem with greedy politicians as it is with WalMart, but the point still stands.

 

[MikeFlynn74]

Unless they're forcing people to work there, I'd say that anyone who works there is doing so voluntarily.

By destroying all the other buisness in the area- yes they are forcing people to work there.

Also they want to put a super Walmart near us- Every one in the City of Anchorage voted against it and the city did not approve it. Walmart said they would bankrupt the city in court if they were not allowed to continue.

I dont want any more white trash depots in our city destroying property value and running all the other buisnesses out.

 

[zoebisch01]

I dont want any more white trash depots in our city destroying property value and running all the other buisnesses out.

I was reading an article where a business owner applied for a loan and was denied. The reason he was denied was because Walmart was moving in (wasn't even there yet) and that fact devalued all real properties in the immediate area that would be in competition with Walmart.

I like being able to speak with the business owner, and like being able to see them run a successful business in part because my money is going there. I decided recently that I just can't stand shopping at Walmart, so I am taking my business elsewhere. I like to see as a decision to invest in small business rather than a Boycott.

 

[Evan!]

By destroying all the other buisness in the area- yes they are forcing people to work there.

And they destroy these businesses how? With rocket launchers or high explosives? No, with lower prices AHHHHHHHH! HELP! LOWER PRICES! Look, Mike, I don't like it when small shops close up either, but the cold hard fact of the matter is that if these communities really wanted to hold onto their mom-n-pop locals, then they'd boycott walmart. People vote with their dollars, so I hate to have to tell you this, but it's not WalMart that's "destroying" other businesses, it's the people that shop there. So take up a beef with them. WalMart wouldn't last a month if nobody shopped there! (and, as an aside, they hardly destroy ALL the other businesses in the area---we have a walmart, and a sh*t-ton of other stores too that it must compete with). I think you're being disingenuous when you say that. Furthermore, if there really were this theoretical town where no other business but WalMart existed, then people STILL wouldn't be "forced" to work there, because they could always move to another town that didn't have a WalMart, or had other stores in addition to WalMart.

Also they want to put a super Walmart near us- Every one in the City of Anchorage voted against it and the city did not approve it. Walmart said they would bankrupt the city in court if they were not allowed to continue.

What are they so afraid of? If "everyone in the city of anchorage" voted against it, then how, pray tell, is WalMart supposed to keep afloat once they do build their store there? I mean, why would everyone in the city of Anchorage vote against WalMart building a store there, then turn around and shop there? That'd be hypocritical, would it not?

I dont want any more white trash depots in our city destroying property value and running all the other buisnesses out.

Tell that to the poor folks who can't afford to shop at Whole Foods. Tell them, "sorry, we don't care about affordable living costs, because we hate WalMart".

Nothin' gets my goat more than someone wanting to open a business, and the "high and mighties" telling them they can't. I'd bet you don't see the poor folks who could really use the lower prices of a Super WalMart Grocery Store objecting to it getting built, but then, the poor folks don't have as much say as all the property owners around town who are concerned not about the high cost of living, but about their own property values. Why not just give them a chance? If they didn't have the "WAL*MART" sign on the front, I hardly think there'd be this kind of objection---but really what this boils down to is socialism at its ugliest. The fact is, WalMart wouldn't be moving in there unless they were sure they could make money, which means that there are plenty of people who would like to save $$ by shopping at WalMart. So essentially what you're saying to your local townsfolk is, "sorry folks, but we know better than you where you should and should not shop, and we're voting to make that decision for you". Socialism FTW.

 

[MikeFlynn74]

Evan-
I understand what you are saying. But Walmart often emplys unfair tactics like blocking access to other buisnesses, taking others to court until the lawyer fees are too much. Saving money? On what, ultra cheap chinese junk that you will have to buy 3 of instead of paying 10% more for the one to last you 10x as long?

You are being a little naive about this if you think Walmart doesnt raise its prices back up once all the surrounding competition is gone.

Tell that to the poor folks who can't afford to shop at Whole Foods. Tell them, "sorry, we don't care about affordable living costs, because we hate WalMart".

Ge tthe **** off welfare if you cant afford to shop anywhere than walmart.

 

[CBBaron]

Check out lines are one reason why I nearly always avoid Walmart and usually avoid Giant Eagle and HomeDepot. The small local grocery chain that has a store very near my house is excellent about having sufficient checkout lanes. It is a small store but nearly always busy. But with a few exceptions the checkout lanes are never more than 2 deep.
Ofcourse I live in a major city so I have choices, in many small cities and towns the choices without significant travel are much more limited.
Craig

 

[MikeFlynn74]

And another thing- What happened to Americans having pride in their buisnesses or local trades? You cant find a good auto parts salesman, hardware man or anyone who knows anything about what they are selling.
The local Fred Meyers by my house the Butcher really knows his stuff. That makes me happy. Even the Liquor store guy knows what he has and will order you anything!

God it makes me sick to see stuff like that dissapear. Same people that support Walmart are the same people that think Alaska is an Island by Hawaii

 

[VatorMan]

No socialist here-but I have seen firsthand the devistation a Wal Mart can have on a small town. My hometown used to have a thriving downtown square with a corner drug store,family owned jewelry store, etc... It's now a block of closed up shops. Nothing but dollar stores and junk/antique stores can survive.

It's a typical David/Goliath battle except in this case Goliath wins. Wal Mart can offer lower prices due to the sheer volume of product they buy. You can't compete with them. As was said before-All the local expertise in certain areas have left. It's cheaper to buy a piece of junk TV/appliance at Wal Mart than to shop at your local appliance store and find a quality item and someone that can support you after the purchase.

Wal Mart has taught America to accept sub standard products as a fact of life.

 

[Klainmeister]

I have balls, i'll come out and say it: I don't like capitalism (to a degree)

 

[JustDave]

Wow, this thread certainly went way off topic quickly.

To the OP, all opinions about Walmart aside, I agree with you -- they need to open up more friggin' lanes.

 

[Melana]

I admit that i do shop at Walmart to save money. I will also admit that I use the money saved to support local shops that I enjoy for example I frequent local bakeries, specialty food shops, local home brew supply shops, etc. If i can save money on my household cleansers/laundry detergent/paper goods/etc to spend locally I'm happy.

 

[olllllo]

If Walmart offered bulk grains and hops where would you shop?

And you'd stand in line.

 

[MikeFlynn74]

If Walmart offered bulk grains and hops where would you shop?

Problem is it would be Hops would be flavorless and the grain would most likly contain 10% mice.

 

[CBBaron]

Walmart is no more of a corporate greed machine than any other chain store, they just are bigger and better at it.

Exactly!
First that makes them the face for all that is wrong with the model even if there are some things good.
Second, Walmart is one the best (worst) at this type of model.

The mom and pops have been disappearing for decades due to the big chain stores and many of them should have disappeared due to over service and under service. But I do bemoan the reduction in quality of goods generally sold and the lack of experience available in these big stores.

I will continue to avoid the Walmarts and HomeDepots when possible because my experience is nearly always unpleasant. The prices are usually good but the quality of goods and especially service is very subpar. My local hardware actually has people that know what they are talking about and try to help. The grocery store also has pleasant and helpful people and the selection of food products is at least as varied as the big chain store with 3x the square footage.

Craig

 

[olllllo]

This is a great read about Walmarts effect on quality of goods:

http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/102/open_snapper.html

This isn't necessarilty true in all cases, but this is the effect lower prices can have on even a major name brand.

 

[olllllo]

Back on topic.
I want banks to open more teller lanes.

Get those lazy ass bank officers behind the windows.

I see you in your office sharpening pencils.

 

[Evan!]

Problem is it would be Hops would be flavorless and the grain would most likly contain 10% mice.

Humorous hyperbole aside, I recently bought some groceries at the SuperWalMart in Harrisonburg and everything I bought, even the pastrami and the rye bread, was as good or better than I'd get at Giant or Kroger or wherever else. But the prices were much lower.

Everyone likes to joke about the products at WalMart being substandard, but my experience has been the opposite. The only reason usually avoid WalMart is because it's kind of depressing. Unless it's a new store, they're nasty and smell of trailer park musk. Not that I think I'm "better" than the trailer park folks, it's just a visceral reaction to it. Many of the people you see in WalMart are kind of depressing.

 

[Evan!]

Back on topic.
I want banks to open more teller lanes.

Get those lazy ass bank officers behind the windows.

I see you in your office sharpening pencils.

Tellers? Pshaw. I can't remember the last time I used a teller. I do all my banking online, direct-deposit, direct-withdrawal, and via an ATM. I'm happy to do it that way!

 

[olllllo]

Tellers? Pshaw. I can't remember the last time I used a teller. I do all my banking online, direct-deposit, direct-withdrawal, and via an ATM. I'm happy to do it that way!

I work for a small company w/o direct deposit.

 

[JustDave]

Tellers? Pshaw. I can't remember the last time I used a teller. I do all my banking online, direct-deposit, direct-withdrawal, and via an ATM. I'm happy to do it that way!

Agreed!

The less human interaction I have in a given day, the better. But you folks are just fine

 

[PseudoChef]

Humorous hyperbole aside, I recently bought some groceries at the SuperWalMart in Harrisonburg and everything I bought, even the pastrami and the rye bread, was as good or better than I'd get at Giant or Kroger or wherever else. But the prices were much lower.

Everyone likes to joke about the products at WalMart being substandard, but my experience has been the opposite. The only reason usually avoid WalMart is because it's kind of depressing. Unless it's a new store, they're nasty and smell of trailer park musk. Not that I think I'm "better" than the trailer park folks, it's just a visceral reaction to it. Many of the people you see in WalMart are kind of depressing.

Not to mention Wal-Mart probably has a higher turnover than your neighborhood Kroger, so the products are probably fresher, believe it or not.