One alarming reason Walmart's profit is down

Business Insider via Yahoo ^ | 8/18/15 | Hayley Peterson

[DoodleDawg]

Well they got rid of all the greeters.

[Squawk 8888]

Walmart is trading just under $70/share today, so the return on investment is 1.54%. You can do better with a certificate at your local bank.

[nascarnation]

The greeters are back, at least here in Indiana.
And it’s the same sweet elderly lady who staffed the post 3 yrs ago.
I think mgmt figured out the value.

[deport]

I noticed they brought the door checkers back.

*****************

I’ve not seen them check that many basket that are going out the doors. I did see them
checking one the other day but I’ve not seen it often.

[DoodleDawg]

The greeters are back, at least here in Indiana.

I don't get to Wal-Mart very often, but the ones I've been to lately don't have the greeters.

[deport]

Well they got rid of all the greeters

*************

They’re back or at least at the Walmarts I’ve been in lately.

[nascarnation]

Perhaps this is a local thing.

The reality was this elderly lady wasn’t capable of doing much real physical labor when they dispatched her to the bowels of the store. So they haven’t lost much productivity and probably gain on “shrink”.

[cva66snipe]

Wanna be searched? Funny kind of American, you appear to be. When Walmart tries to stop me at the door and look at my product and receipt I just tell them no thanks and have a nice day, one employee threatened to call the police, I told him to knock himself out. I'm funny that way, not liking being treated as a thief,

Been there done that and I tell them they better get a warrant and they better have proof or I will be filing a lawsuit.

This actually happened. About a year ago I had about $350 of items in a cart at Walmart. I unloaded the cart and the cashier rang it all up. I ran my Debt Card through the machine and it acted like it accepted it then showed the clerk for me to re-swipe the card. I did it again and it seemed to take and she said Thank you for shopping Walmart etc. But no receipt was printed. At that point I was concerned so I asked the clerk for a receipt in case I got hit twice for the purchase. The computer would not allow her too print one when usually they can. I said OK get the manager I want a receipt.

I had a feeling that it didn't even go through thus the reason she could not produce a receipt for me. The manager came up and looked puzzled and played with the register a few minutes then went back to the office and told me to wait about 10 minutes.

In the mean time I was accessing my checking account checking my balance. I knew Walmart Debits hit my account immediately usually. No sign of a purchase. After 15 minutes she came back and said the purchases was canceled and shows canceled in the system and showed me proof.

I told the clerk and manager "do you realize I could have just kept my mouth shut and walked out of here with a cart full of goods for free?" I would never have been caught. Yeah I can see exactly how they can show theft loss. Their inventory and checkout system stinks. How many times a day does that happen?

NO! I will not be searched without a warrant. I make it a point to have receipt visible in hand as I leave. If they suspect I stole from them we're standing right at the front entrance and waiting on LEO to arrive and we will discuss the accusation at the entrance as well.

[scooby321]

I was at local Grocery Chain and the cashier told the manager that the man just stole something

He said don't worry about it.

I felt like gezz he just made me pay more for items and the manager doesn't care

[cva66snipe]

That's interesting. It seems to me that I spend lots of time searching for items at the grocery store and getting upset about it. I switch stores or products for that reason every now and then. Do they all have Walmart’s problem?

All the Walmarts yes they have that problem. Grocery stores vary. I shop at Ingles usually for groceries and 99% of the items I usually purchase are there. Walmart at times is lucky to have even 75%. Ingles unloads the cart for me and after scanning bags and loads it back into the cart and offers to help me to the car. I used to buy two carts.

Their stock clerks keep the shelves stocked and I haven't seen an item not be there more than once. But I've seen Walmart not have any 10W/30 or 5W/30 motor oil for almost a month. Walmart also caused a huge profit loss a fews years back with the Great Value Only fiasco in the foods section. I buy frozen foods there and some produce and a few other items. Walmart Food Section has gone down hill from it's beginnings IMO.

When you're in a grocery store and an item is missing ask a clerk first and then the manager. Most grocery chain managers have the knowledge and clout to address your concerns. You talk to a Walmart Manager and they have no real say about what is carried etc. Bentonville designates every inch of shelf space. In stores even the checkout lanes where Gum, Candy, magazines, etc are is rented to vendors believer it or not. Same thing in a walk in convenience store the items at the checkout are there because the vendor pays extra to put them there usually. Also keep in mind what another poster was talking about. Walmart is the top buyer from companies and demands their price be met. The producer may sell that item nation wide to all stores. But once a Walmart contract is lost some can not stay in business and the item is discontinued on a national level.

Another store I like is Food City. Food City in my area bought out Winn Dixie. They have throwbacks to older brands even in the soft drinks and sell sugar made soft drinks :>} Used to a few years ago Walmarts food prices could not be beaten by mos3t grocery chains. The Great Value Fiasco changed that. That is no longer true. Get a loyalty card at a store {I give them fictitious names of cartoon or TV characters for privacy reasons} and by watching sales I come out much better in price, long time purchased items being available, and overall quality. Plus their service is a lot better.

I used to work in a convenience store as a night clerk. We had a way of making up theft loss from the ones who did manage to get past us. We simply sold loose snacks. For example a 12 pack of single Reese Peanut Butter Cups was opened and placed in a jar. Back in 1987 we sold them for $.25 a piece and our cost was about $.10 a piece. The store manager had the discretion to do things such as this to cover loss and increase overall store profits.

[cva66snipe]

I was at local Grocery Chain and the cashier told the manager that the man just stole something He said don't worry about it. I felt like gezz he just made me pay more for items and the manager doesn't care

The manager I worked for didn't take lightly to theft customer or employee. We had to count cigarettes and beer every shift and it had better match sales.

One night a guy came in and got two twelve packs of beer from the cooler. I watched him and saw him making a break for the door. I grabbed the night stick we had and took off after him. First thing he did was run into my 71 LTD parked in front of the door. He lost at least a twelve pack there. He got up and ran to a car that was waiting and was dropping more and with one can of beer dove into the passenger side window LOL. I let the stick fly and popped the back window. Word gets out. Word also got out that all the clerks carried. I carried for my protection. But the nightstick was reserved for beer grabbers.

The gas drive off losses usually got recovered as well. We had a camera. The manager would get the license plate number and have a cop run it for ownership info. The manager wrote a letter to the registered owner with a picture, sent it certified mail to the vehicle owner, and said please bring to the store the amount taken plus a $30 recovery fee or charges will be forthcoming to the person. You'd be surprised. Most were glad too oblige LOL.

[donna]

So, Great Value was re-launched, but what went wrong the first time?

[stephenjohnbanker]

Yeah, everything bad has increased .

[cva66snipe]

So, Great Value was re-launched, but what went wrong the first time?

A few years back maybe as far back as five years ago Walmart decided to pull all name brand items from it's food section shelves except for Great Value their generic brand name. It was mainly canned goods but included more items. Customers got very upset and Walmart rescinded their policy but it never went back to all the previous choices they had before. Nor did the prices.

They do weird counter productive things. I went in to Wally a couple months ago looking for a box of Munchies peanut butter crackers. A big sale item in any store made by Frito Lay. Usually they were on a roller cart center aisle in the foods section and real easy to find. I looked there and in the crackers and cookie section. It wasn't to be found. I finally asked a clerk and he kinda quietly asked me which ones I wanted and I told him. He went to the back and brought them out to me. I have an idea that there was a dispute with the vendor and the display was pulled off the floor. That kind of needless nonsense makes customers angry.

Back when a member of the Walton family actually was CEO it was a well ran company. When Sam's son passed and others with very different ideas took over management it started the decline. Used too if you called Walmart Corp about something it was someone at Walmart in Bentonville who called you back. I got a call from a VP once. It was over the departmental entrance alarms they had everywhere. Now you get a generic call from a local associate who can not resolve anything. Upper corporate management has forgotten where the store came from and what policies made it a success to start with.

[GingisK]

They sell junk and we know it?

[donna]

Thanks for the info, it’s very interesting. I’ve just never considered all those things before.

[ThePatriotsFlag]

Not supported by the facts. Yep, they want your best price.

---

I was not stating an opinion my FRiend ... I was stating facts ... I've been with a company driven out of business by them thanks to their little purchasing office, down in Bentonville, AR. I've been in that office and each year the first question is, "what is your discount to us this year" ... and if you do not offer them a discount, all the business you had gotten from them, that you had geared your factories up to handle, is threatened totally. So you give another discount. Eventually, there is none to give. You tell them this, and they move on to another supplier, in our case, a supplier in China, and you are left with warehouses full of material and people out of jobs. No, I STATED THE FACTS, I'VE LIVED THEM. And I will restate. WalMart works off the profits of the suppliers, when there are none left, they move on ... this is why most everything you see in a WalMart is not made in the USA. When I first worked with them Sam Walton MADE SURE every product in the store was USA ... he'd turn over in his grave to see what they've become.

[Mr Radical]

Theft? And there was I, thinking it was simply redistribution of wealth!
/s

[sergeantdave]

Walmart is still the place for me to go when I need common items. For example, I needed to replace the showerhead in the vacation house. I checked the local hardware store, and they wanted $68 for a showerhead. Drove to walmart and found an adequate showerhead for $8. Guess where I bought the showerhead - and no, I don’t have hundred dollar bills falling out of my wallet.

Hooray for Walmart.