The Wal-Mart You Don't Know

Fastcompany.com ^ | 11-18-03 | Charles Fishman

[LibertySailor]

ping

[LibertySailor]

This ia a lengthy article, but it was a great read.

[Dead Dog]

It's a good read, but already posted. Joint the thread..

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1021792/posts

[sauropod]

Ping.

[LibertySailor]

thanks for the heads up, cuz

[BMiles2112]

Sounds to me like they're fair, honest, tough on cost, and know what the market is asking for. A perfect example of a great company. The typical complaints about their willingness to encourage outsourcing of products should be directed at the consumers. If the consumers wanted products made in the USA, and were willing to pay for them, Walmart would do it. But, for better or worse, we're willing to save a few bucks to have stuff made somewhere else.

[Sam's Army]

read later

[cinFLA]

This ia a lengthy article, but it was a great read.

Common courtesy demands you use the search engine BEFORE posting a article.

[CanadianLibertarian]

This article would do any Nazi propagandist proud. Liberal "commentators" have actually become that good at the art of agitprop.

There are just too many examples in this "article" to list. Example 1: describing the pickle jar as if it were a scene from a horror movie; deliberate intent to create a horrified impression in the viewer's mind from something as innocent as a jar. (Shades of Nazi propaganda making Jewish facial features seem horrific in their caricatures.)

Example 2: Lying that Wal-Mart "crushes" competitors. Nope, it outcompetes them. The verb "to crush" means to physically break something into tiny pieces, not to economically outcompete someone in the marketplace. Deliberate misuse of metaphor to (again) inflame and horrify the reader.

Go thru the rest of the article. It's fascinating to contemplate the corruption of a human mind that can produce verbal filth like this.

[malia]

It is a very good read! and I missed the first x it was posted. Sooo thanks. I don't like what Wal-Mart and the like are doing to US manufacturers. Asian manufacturering in the mid 90's skyrocketed!!!

[HonorInPa]

Quote of the day...

"We want clean air, clear water, good living conditions, the best health care in the world--yet we aren't willing to pay for anything manufactured under those restrictions."

[malia]

"The typical complaints about their willingness to encourage outsourcing of products should be directed at the consumers."

I bet I know of one consumer who does not buy her levis at Wal-Mart.

[BMiles2112]

I don't like what Wal-Mart and the like are doing to US manufacturers.
Walmart's in business because it provides Americans the goods they want at low prices. Before blaming them, you need to blame US consumers for buying foreign goods, and the US gov't for unnecessary regulation, which makes US manufacturers less competitive against foreign competition.

[No.6]

Exactly.

However, here's what I have to say about my products. I buy American, or from one of America's real allies, as much as possible, because the cost of shoddy things made in China far outweighs the convenience of a buck or two saved.

My favorite example involves a pair of shoes. I have a pair of sneakers made by Adidas in Italy which I've had since 1988. They're in perfect shape. OTOH, the sneakers I've been able to find lately are from China and last 18-24 months.

If I could get a pair like the Italian ones I would gladly pay more. But I can't; the flip side of the Wal-Mart situation means nobody who makes more expensive, better quality items stays in business.

[nothingnew]

I don't want a pickle...just wanna ride my motorcickle.

FMCDH

[Safetgiver]

What's a WalMart?

[-YYZ-]

'An I don't wanna die, I just wanna ride my motorcy ... cle

[Question_Assumptions]

In abundance situations, mice and rabbits are willing to breed until their population outstrips the land's ability to produce enough food to feed them and then they all starve. That mice and rabbits do this does not mean it is a good thing.

Because companies often fail long after they've stopped being profitable, it is possible for discounting to destroy entire industries, even as the lead discounter fails to become profitable because it sucks the profits from the rest of the industry. If companies closed their doors the moment they stopped being profitable or if the price of goods closely tracked with the actual costs of production and distribution, this would not be as much of a problem. But an unprofitable company that can never become profitable at the price at which it sells its goods can linger unprofitably for years, making it impossible for any other company to be profitable in the same industry. That may seem like a good deal in the short term but it may not be a good deal in the long term. No one wants to support excessive profits but we can't go on forever providing no profits.

Just as mice and rabbits can continue to breed long after they've reached a population level too large to be supported because the food doesn't run out right way, discounting below the level of reasonable profitabilty can force entire industries to operate at a level where they do not fail immediately but will inevitably fail in the long term. The nasty surprise at the end of both overshoot scenarios can be similar.

Too much of anything, even a good thing like discounts and low prices, can be a bad thing.

[LibertySailor]

Right on!

I love Indian motorcycles