Really. For a long time I've wondered why I don't ever feel guilty going to Target, but don't like to admit to shopping at Wal-Mart. Truth is, until last week it had been years since I last went to a Wal-Mart (except when visiting my mom and it's one of the only stores in her small town).
A new super Wal-Mart recently opened at the old Avondale Mall location here in Atlanta several months ago after many years of legal wrangling by the locals to stop it. Remember, Wal-Mart almost always wins. In this case, Wal-Mart had to do a lot of special landscaping, etc., and from the looks of things they aren't allowed to have any big signage showing the store is there. Really, I was afraid I'd passed it when I tried to find it last week. I was actually not opposed to this Wal-Mart location. They put it in an area of town that has not seen better days in decades. The store brought a lot of jobs and a lot of traffic to a section of Memorial Drive that really needed the boost. There wasn't a decent grocery store in the area, and Wal-Mart, therefore, provides residents nearby with an alternative to driving miles away.
But, why did I go? Well, I had just read an interesting article about Wal-Mart's attempts to "go green" in their stores. I had a little time and just wanted to see for myself if they incorporated any of the "green" technology into this new store.
They did. For example, there are plenty of skylights in the ceiling, which brings in loads of natural lights. Lights switch on and off depending on need (some sort of fancy sensors in use there) and even the cold case lights switch on and off, sensing when folks walk by. Oh, and the cold case is closed -- saving all that electricity that seeps out of those open cases. Pretty cool stuff. Anyway, on my way out I noticed some bathroom towels in a color I thought might be perfect for the new bath in my house. So I bought two nice. lofty Egyptian cotton towels and matching hand towels and wash rags. They are perfect in the room! Yay! But, I still feel guilty. Why? The country of origin for these towels is listed as "USA and/or imported." WTF does that mean?
Now, about my love affair with Target. I am currently wearing a shirt I bought at Target, made in Nicaragua. In fact, I went to Target yesterday because my hair dryer finally died. I used the old hair dryer for at least 16 years (thank you, Vidal Sassoon)! Hair dryer technology hasn't really changed much in all these years (a lot like a washing machine) so I figured a cheap-o unit from Target would be a fine replacement. $9.99 for a very nice salon-inspired hair dryer, AND it's in a cute bluish-purple color! I also purchased a few new lightweight cotton girlie t-shirts, two pair of flip-flops, a new toilet brush and stand, two boxes of 1-gallon sized zip-top bags, sponges, and a bottle of water for the ride home. Yeah. That's the trouble with Target. You go in for one $10 item and come out having spent $80.
Anyway, the point is, I feel no guilt at having gone to Target. Is it because Target hasn't got the Wal-Mart reputation for ruining small-town America? Is it that Target does have a reputation for sending some of its profits to local charities and community projects? Or, is it that Target is so much more fashionable? Target markets itself as the discount store for young "upwardly mobiles" (a few years ago, I'd have called 'em "yuppies"), and I seem to have bought into their marketing plan. What does that say about me?
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My problem with Wal-Mart is evident in small towns across America, Corbin KY being my favorite example. When we last stopped there, there were TWO giant empty Wal-Mart buildings. The first store closed when they built a fancy new second store. Ditto for the second. So now these small towns have huge empty buildings that no one else can possibly fill. In some places empty stores have been subdivided and at least partially filled but you have to have a pretty good economy going for that to happen -- unlikely in small to medium sized towns. Yet Wal-Mart continues to spread and expand and move on to new construction. I don't like the trail of destruction and waste Wal-Mart leaves behind and that's why I don't shop there.
And I have yet to see an empty Target store with a new one across the street.
And, their buying practices suck. They have such buying clout, they can drive pricing down, thus effectively killing competition......
WalMart makes me shudder.
Albany is evidence of that same thing Betsy. Walmart has built a total of 2 stores in the Albany area, each one larger than the preceding one. As they need to grow, they just abandon their old store and build an even larger one. Places struggle to try and fill the old locations, and usually don't succeed. At least they have finally subdivided the old stores and they both currently have tenants that seem to be doing ok, but the waste left in their wake of "expansion" is pretty awful. At least Target reinvests part of their profits to local charities and let's face it, they have pretty snazzy advertising campaigns too! We hate the dreaded Walmart experience and do jsut about anything to avoid going, choosing to shop at Publix and Target whenever we can.
I meant to say Walmart has built a total of 3 stores here... Coffee hasn't kicked in yet this morning!
I have problems with both. Nearly everything I have bought from Wal Mart falls apart pretty quickly. I have terrible trouble in Target stores finding sales people when I need help. Generally, though, Target is a more pleasant place to shop with more attractive merchandise and merchandizing. Wal Mart feels super cut-rate, like shopping on the skids. Wal Mart seems to treat their employees poorly. Target employees I have spoken with are pretty much happy with their workplace experience. I have heard from people in the company that Wal Mart was better before Sam died. His death allowed some within the company to innovate in directions based purely on greed, moving farther and farther away from Sams' original vision for what Wal Mart should be and its place in the community.
My main beef with Wally World is that they are miserable corporate partners. I have worked at 4 different companies that have dealt with them in the transportation business and they are so huge and so demanding that they do not try to establish long term working relationships. It is "what have you done for me lately" on a one way street. Every deal has always ended prematurely and every time you end up feeling used and abused. I get the same feeling when I shop there which is very very very rarely. Target on the other hand tends to be a lot easier and more comfortable to deal with from what I have experienced and they dont leave me with that scorched earth feeling that Wally does. And I really hate that little smiley faced bastard price cutter Wally has in their commercials.
Ask some of the former employees of the Vlasic Pickle Company how they feel about Wal-Mart.
I was pretty heavily involved in the movement to keep Avondale Estates from annexing that site that the Wal-Mart eventually went on, and I can tell you more about it, if you're interested. That part of the whole thing, at least, was genuinely about throwing it back to Dekalb County.
I'd have been happier if the property had been mixed use, as originally slated, but you can't have it all...where would you put it.
Susan
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