Wal-Mart

[Amnesiac]

What do you guys think of Wal-Mart? Is it a shining example of a prosperous capitalist society or a greedy scum corporation that fucks its employees and destroys small businesses? What do you think of Wal-Mart's "invasions" of small towns that result in the closing of large numbers of small businesses?

I think that Wal-Mart's actions can be very sketchy at times. Allegations of employee mistreatment and the affects on a small town when a Wal-Mart opens nearby are serious.

[TopGear]

With everything else in life its the same with Wal Mart. Everything has pro's and con's.

Pros:
- Opens a superstore that will provide a city or town with everything it needs from cloths to food all under one roof.
- Wal mart has the lowest prices on the market for just about everything, and if its not they will match the price.
- When a store opens it creates 150 to 300 jobs! ( Thats a shit load of jobs for one store)
- Most Wal Marts provide certain jobs just for the elderly.

Con's:
- Kills most of the towns small businesses that were the city/towns suppliers.
- Known for treating there employees like dog shit.
- Known for shitty customer service.

Those are just some and probly the just the tip of the ice burg for the pros and cons that I can think of.

Feel free to add on.

[CairAndros]

When I was in Florida recently I visited a Wal-Mart on a few occasions and was mildly impressed by their range of products and their prices. But from what I saw it seemed to be a decent store; the people I was served by were friendly and seemed to be very nice people.

In Scotland we have the little brother of the Wal-Mart family; Asdas. They are much the same as a Wal-Mart; loads of goods, cheap prices etc although on a much smaller scale - everything is bigger in America :L

Although Asdas customer service is top notch and they treat their employees very well =]

[Commander Thor]

Recently they've been overhauling most of their stores (Around here at least). The abomination that was Wal-Mart is largely gone.
While, yes, Wal-Mart still does kill most town's small (And in some cases, medium) sized businesses, the quality of their stores, and their customer service has greatly improved.

[Perseus]

I hate Wal-Mart. The inside is so retarded because it's a freaking warehouse. Target is much better.

[Commander Thor]

I hate Wal-Mart. The inside is so retarded because it's a freaking warehouse. Target is much better.

Nah, Wal-Mart is a hybrid store/warehouse.
Sams/Costco are warehouses.

[Fact]

similarly to CarloAndros, I live in the UK and I have an Asda about a mile from my house. As far as I'm aware, they treat their staff well and I've never come across rude or inattentive staff whilst in there.

I think it does kill the more traditional set up of having a small village with its own shops - it destroys character. However, I think in most ways, from a consumer's point of view, it's a lot better.
From the small business's point of view it initially sucks of course - they're out of business. They could easily get jobs in the new store, though, maybe even continue in the profession they were in before.

[Perseus]

Nah, Wal-Mart is a hybrid store/warehouse.
Sams/Costco are warehouses.

If you walk inside, it's a warehouse.