Posted on 05/08/2008 10:48:08 AM PDT by LJayne
How could job loss for 80 small-town residents be a "great story?"
(Excerpt) Read more at newsbusters.org ...
More job losses to make the economy look worse to help them elect more libs?
huh?
oh man.
“Corporate Greed” takes a hit.
Nothing else matters.
Same way the liberals and MSM root for any large corporation to fail. Home Depot, Microsoft, Exxon, Starbucks, Wall-mart.
Its always the same crap from the liberals.
“Same way the liberals and MSM root for any large corporation to fail. Home Depot, Microsoft, Exxon, Starbucks, Wall-mart.
Its always the same crap from the liberals.”
And then of course blame Bush when those people are suddenly out of work.
Brattleboro is where they want to arrest Bush and Cheney if they come to town. It seems that New England is a lot more resistant to chains than the rest of the country, from my few visits there.
They are not resistant to chains, just those owned by private parties. They’d be overjoyed to have a people’s collective imposed on them, complete with 12 foot high barbed wire fences and guard towers with armed guards.
I hate the cheap China stuff at Home Depot but I do enjoy not being hostage to unreasonable prices at the local mom & pop.
About a year ago Home Depot decided to go “Green” and they pumped millions into the Global Warming fraud to go “Green” but now they’re paying the price for the bad investment.
Go to the local hardware store, where the guy who owns the store lives in town and the money he makes gets spent around that same town.
I don’t disagree with your sentiments, but the “corporate greed” was meant sarcastically. IdiotJournalists use this term of class-warfare propaganda in routine, knee-jerk fashion.
Unless I need a real expensive item this is what I do. It costs me about $8 in gas to drive over to Home Depot or Lowes, and $0.50 to visit my local hardware store. (We're in a very small town) I figure that if I'm buying an item that is less than $50 then I'm either ahead or breaking even considering the cost differential vs the cost of driving, not to mention the benefit to my small town's economy.
Except for hand tools. I always drive to Sears because I have broken so many tools over the years that it pays off in the long run.
I think it is a good story. The True Value in my town is very competitive with the big box stores, only it does not sell lumber and other types of items. The local stores should be applauded. Just because Home Depot is big and employs a lot of people does not mean it is a well run business. Corporate CEO’s in this country are very overpaid, overpaid even when stockholders are sometimes punished. When big business fails, there are good reasons. When locally owned businesses survive there are very good reasons, they made adjustments and remained competitive. If everything is fairly comparable, I will always attempt to patronize the locally owned business. There are LOTS of things I do not like about Walmart, but I shop there, it is a fairly well run company. But one of things about Walmart is when they come into town, some businesses may go out of businesses, but studies indicate that a Walmart will bring economic growth to other businesses. The balance sheet shows that Home Depot grew very very fast, but after the easy growth was over, they made considerable mistakes.
Most of the townsfolk aren’t too upset.
I think one of the reasons Lowe’s is doing better than Home Depot is that they have the beginnings of the wave of the future—service. This is because supplying contractors only works in good economic times, but the need for home improvement and remodeling and repair is year around.
Lowe’s offers professional installation and remodeling, that, while good, could be much, much better.
It has become almost intolerable for the average person to try and find reputable contractors and repairmen. They are out there, but trying to connect with them is hard.
A company like Lowe’s could make all kinds of connections for a homeowner, and not for just things like plumbing, electrical, appliance repair, and home heating/cooling.
There is a great demand for specialty work of endless varieties, from cut glass and mirrors, metalwork, restoration, fabrication, architecture and design, engraving, roofing, landscaping, pool maintenance. The list goes on and on.
The idea being that a Lowe’s manager could visit somebody’s house, and give an estimate. The homeowner could point out everything that needs replacement, repair, or routine maintenance, and receive an itemized estimate and an annual timetable.
Then Lowe’s would dispatch certified workers and subcontractors, make all the specialty arrangements in the background, provide the materials, inspect the work and make adjustments, and receive payment.
The approach should be if the customer wanted it, they should find some way to provide it. Be it a stainless steel swamp cooler, made to order Saltillo tiles, laser engraved metal finishing, a hand carved picture frame, etc.
People in the Brattleboro area can easily drive to the Keene, NH Home Depot to shop (that is, if they can stomach the idea of “Live Free or Die”, which is anathema to many Brattleboro residents). They can also drive across the bridge to Hinsdale, NH to shop at Walmart. So they can feel “morally superior” and look askance at those horrible corporations and still take advantage of the benefits that those corporations bring to the area... Don’t listen to what they say - instead, watch what they actually do. For the typical leftist, hypocrisy is not only necessary for survival, it’s the foundation of their souls...
I hate Lowes and Home Depot, service sucks. I avoid them if I can get it at my local Ace hardware I will. Somebody always there asking me if they can help me right when I walk in the door instead of wandering around 40 aisles trying to find something.
Brattleboro ... another city of evil.
Vermont is backward. For real.
My Home Depot is one that is closing also. People are not too happy about it where I am. Sure, we still have a Lowes, but it’s all about options. I will miss playing them off each other for price matching, competitive coupons and the like.
Prices were 2-3 times higher than the same item, same manufacturer in the larger city 45 miles away.
Service was non-existant and owner would grin snarkily when you asked how long it would take and answer:”As long as it takes.”
No one hired who wasn't family or so subservient they would accept terrible pay, no benefits and terrible hours.
When the customer would ask the owner why a price was so high, a delay so long or an item unavailable after 6 weeks, the owner would just let the customer know that they were captive to whatever the owner wanted to do, given the logistics of rural life.
All those sole proprietorships were under water before Walmart due to terrible attitude and unfavorable pricing. People would travel 45 miles one way just to have a choice, get a decent price or even find an item. Often, we would travel or mail order just to avoid the patronizing store owner who we knew was overcharging us. That store owner didn't even take the risk to stock items, but rather, would order it when you made your *purchase* and then you would have to wait.
Today, with TruValu, Walmart and Walgreen's, service is better,selection is better, price is fair, hiring is fair, wages are fair and there are benefits for employees. The municipality also receives more in property taxes and sales tax. The products offered before were no different, except perhaps that back then, there were more American-made items, but many of those items were just as shoddy as any made in China. Then, they were made in Korea/Japan/Taiwan/eastern Europe.
There is absolutely no more velocity of money spent locally with local owners. There is actually more velocity with the chains. We do much more service business locally with Walmart employees, including management, who now have local jobs, where before, they had to travel those same 45 miles each way to work and would do other business where they worked, since they had to be there anyway. Before, the snotty owners of various businesses were tightwads who refused to patronize anyone else local, unless they were related, and sometimes, not even then, if there were family feuds. We would find them shopping in the larger city, just as we did. They always looked embarrassed.
Small local merchants that cared for customers, employees and the local economy is a myth.Our town is much more affluent today with the chains. Where a chain competes with the sole propietor, the chain keeps the smaller business competitive. Some small businesses failed and some survived. That is just capitalism. Personally, I love having a choice.
And the managers and employees at Home Depot don’t spend the money around town too ?
HD in Beaver Dam, WI also closing. My grandson enjoyed doing the “Kidz Workshop” project first Saturday every month. Guess this means they’ll have to come to Madison to do the project. The HD here is about 4 blocks from Grandma’s house! :-)
You mean the local hardware store where the guy charges 500% markup on a bolt? Yeah, thanks, you can get ripped off, I think I’ll pass.
We do have a *good*local hardware store that became a chain here, one that successfully competes against Home Depot and Lowes - and they did it by not ripping off their customers. They also did it by having better service and offering products that Home Depot doesn’t, in addition to offering products of better quality. Most “mom and pops” won’t do ANY of the above, hires surly teens to staff the store, and never has what you need in stock.
B ad economic news is always good news for Democrats.
When the economy tanks and people lose their jobs, homes, and savings, they become dependent on government handouts and eventually become addicted to government. And, just as drug addicts keep going back to their dealers for a fix, government addicts likewise keep going back to THEIR dealers. That would be Democrat politicians. A tanking economy means more government addicts and therefore more votes for THEM.
Sabotaging the economy is job #1.
This ain’t rocket surgery.....
If you’re breaking so many Sears tools, why keep going back to Sears? Just what are you making, ha ha ha.
Because there are two other HomeDepot within 15 miles of Brattleboro. Keene, NH and Greenfield, MA.
Don’t you use a cheater bar and a rachet instead of a lug wrench? At least once a week?
Let ‘em gloat, we do the same thing when the dinosaur media lays people off. Home Depot will be fine, I spend enough money there to keep the rest of them in the black.
That’s a *big city*! LOL!
Our nearest little town is 4400 and the *big city* 45 miles away is 51k. Our entire county is barely over 35k in population.
Intereting that a town of 30k equidistant between two large cities had the same situation, though. Prices, of course, come down to purchasing power and of course, the little shops are at a disadvantage and usually go through distributors, which only gives them a slight break over true wholesale, even though the distributor tries for a 35% discount from the vendor.
At one time, our litle town had 5 shoe stores, all with the same merchandise and we had 3 hardware stores, all franchises , and one mill and farm supply store. Now, we have no shoe stores because we can drive about 70 miles to a major shoe discount store and get top brands at about 50% of retail. We have one TruValu and there are perhaps 2 farm co-op stores/mills within 20-25 miles. Home Depot and Menards are 45 miles away and, since DH works in that larger town, it isn’t a problem to shop there. We still have 2-3 computer stores within 20 miles, but we can mail order or use Geek Squad or something along those lines if we need hands on help (rare). I cannot tell you the problems we have had over the past 10-12 years with local computer nerds *fixing* our systems.
Since we still have a Home Depot, I wouldn’t call their problems a *demise*. They oversaturated the eastern part of the state, IMO and the one store here on the western side seems to do fairly well.
I think the liberals hate the lack of unionization at most of the big box stores. I think it is very odd that they love BIG government and centralized economic control but hate BIG retail and centralized buying/warehousing/distribution. Also, why is a big, centralized government inefficient, while a big, centralized retail operation is efficient?
As a former resident of a small town, I agree whole-heartedly. My town had about 15,000 people. Before Wal Mart, you had two choices: suffer poor selection and service from the locally owned stores or drive 2 hours to a nearby city. Once Wal Mart arrived, there were some casualties. But for the most part the town became more vibrant as the locally owned stores had to improve themselves and more people kept their money in town.
“Most of the townsfolk aren’t too upset.
Because there are two other HomeDepot within 15 miles of Brattleboro. Keene, NH and Greenfield, MA.”
That’s not what I got out of their statements on the news report last nite.
While it's true that Craftsman tools are not usually as well made as a Snap-On, it's pretty easy to find a Sears store compared to flagging down a Snap-On truck. :) I actually carried a Snap-On ratchet in my glove box for about 5 years until one day I happened to see a Snap-On truck pulling into a Chevy dealer. I followed him in and got a replacement.
I'm kinda hard on tools though. And Sears’ policy is great. Even for simple things like a phillips screw driver, after a few years the tip gets worn. Take it back, no questions asked. That's because of the wording of the warranty. If it fails to give “complete satisfaction,” return it for a repair or a replacement. It says nothing about materials and workmanship. I like that in a tool.
For instance, I've got a Craftsman shovel that I used to pry a tree stump out the ground. I pried too hard and broke the handle. “No problem sir, here's a brand new one with the same warranty that the old one had.” :)
I’ll be more careful how I phrase things—you got that right.
I think of that when I see "Enter" and "Exit" written in Spanish on their front doors...
That means the spray things sit on the shelf and actually get dusty.
Back in the days when the local hardware was the sole source in town, you got lots of standard 1/2, 3/8, 1/4 inch plumbing fittings of all sorts.
The spray thing for the kitchen sink was an order only item. You had to wait several weeks before it arrived so you could discover it didn't fit!
I have switched to Lowes because they have a greater selection and inventory than Home Depot. Basic stuff, like interior trim, millwork etc, HD just doesn’t carry much—but they’ll be glad to “special order” it for you for a price. No thanks, Lowe’s is a little farther but I can buy it and take it home today, not have to jerk around with some clerk who may or may not get the job done, and then have to make a second trip to pick it up.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.