Why we avoid our closest Walmart and Target

We live less than 5 minutes from Target and about 10 minutes from Walmart.  However, we have learned to NEVER shop at the stores closest to us.

Why?

Because the stores closest to us suck.

We live close to the major American city and many--not all--but many of the workers at our closest Walmart and Target stores simply do not know how to act.  They don't know how to make customers a priority and treat them with common courtesy and a spirit of helpfulness.  On top of that, many of the customers do not know how to act.  They trash the merchandise and make a complete mess of the shelves.  Some of them aggressively interpose themselves between fellow customers and the merchandise they seek.  It's as if they want to exact personal vengeance against people of different backgrounds than their own.  It creates an almost dangerous environment.  If you throw in a poorly lit parking lot near a high crime area, it's just simply not a good place to be.

That's why we drive 20 to 30 miles into the suburbs to encounter nicer store personnel and nicer customers.  It's aggravating.  But, we like to drive and it provides a nicer overall store experience for us.

Corporate trainers for big box merchants would do well to emphasize that not all cultural and racial insensitivity comes from the majority ethnicity to the minority.  Sometimes, it can be vice versa.  People of any sex, race, religion, or national origin can harbor prejudices against a variety of other people based on skin color, national origin, age or gender.  When those prejudices come from a store employee to any customer, it's not a good thing.  

It's the kind of thing that makes a customer want to avoid stores entirely and handle purchases online with the anonymous click of a mouse.

Three Ways Brick-N-Mortar Stores Can Reach In-Store Customers

The folks who run traditional "brick-n-mortar" stores are constantly complain about how hard it is for them to compete with online retailers.  I think they need to stop whining and start thinking.  They need to capitalize on some of their advantages.

Inside a Target Store - photo by Mike Mozart from Funny YouTube, USA (Target) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Here are some of the advantages that traditional "brick-n-mortar" stores have over online merchants.

• Merchandise is on hand for immediate purchase.  
• Customers can closely examine or try on merchandise.
• Located close to where customers live.
• Customers may make impulse purchases.
• Customers can make returns more easily.
• Customers can get personal service.

Unfortunately, many merchants squander these advantages by staffing the stores with rude employees who don't care, by under-staffing key areas like cash registers, by maintaining insufficient stock, and by failing to inform customers of in-store specials and sales.


To reach customers, "brick-n-mortar" stores need to provide pleasant, inviting, and convenient shopping experiences.  Here are three things that "brick-n-mortar" stores can do to reach in-store customers:

1.  Inform Customers of Sales - Most big box stores have Muzak systems, Public Address speakers, wi-fi, large swathes of running televisions, and huge expanses of exterior walls facing outwards towards the community.  A sale flyer pinned to a bulletin board in the store entry just doesn't cut it anymore.  Why not announce sales over the P/A system?  Why not have a scrolling marquis or jumbo-tron score board showing sales right on the front of the building?  At least pay attention to basics and get signage up in individual departments that clearly labels sale merchandise.

2. Eliminate the stock-out - Most big-box stores have automated inventory systems.  Why not have kiosks throughout the store that provide electronic access to that inventory and allow customers to request items from the stockroom when nothing is available on the shelves.  When we are looking for something as customers, we usually leave the store when we encounter a stock out on the specific item we wanted.  Traditional merchants can capture that sale by bringing stock out from the back or by allowing customers to order merchandise online from the store.

Check out lines at Target - By Marlith (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

3. Staff the registers - We often leave big box stores when we see large lines at the cash register.  Big box stores like Walmart and Target are often terrible about letting customers languish in long lines at the register.  These stores need to be more aggressive about opening new lines.

Target Athletic Shoes - Where Men are Men and Women are Too!

My wife and I recently went to target so that she could get a pair of shoes.  She thought she might be able to find a pair of slip on sneakers for the summer.  Unfortunately, there weren't ANY shoes in that style that looked feminine.  Apparently, black and battleship gray is all the rage for women to wear this this summer.   I might think this A-6 Intruder is mighty pretty.  But, I would because I am a MAN.  My wife is not so enamored of the palette.  Apparently, it communicates dreary February rather than Spring to most American women.

My wife would like to wear clothing that is colorful and most definitely feminine for Spring.  Rather than worrying about who is eligible to use their restrooms, Target might want to read up on women's issues.  Things like menopause and the like.  No need to tell me about it because--like I said--I'm a dude.  But, seriously, it would be nice for my wife to have some more definitively feminine choices when it comes to athletic shoes for women.  You could also have flowers on the sides of the shoes or something.


Psst...Target, one more thing, apparently your shoes were 20% off for Memorial Day weekend.  But, your brick-and-mortar store lacked any signage in the shoe department to that effect.

What's not for sale at Target and Walmart

One of the most infuriating aspects of shopping at the big box giants like Target and Walmart is what isn't offered for sale.  Every once in awhile, you'll need something specific for a specific task or a little niche project and you'll head off to a big box thinking you can find it.  Good luck with that!

The big box stores use computer-based planning systems to make sure that every square inch of their shelf space is selling something profitable.  Seldom needed items make way for the often needed items.  Unfortunately, that seldom needed item is often the "project completer" needed to make best use of the often needed items.

I first noticed this a couple of years ago when we were trying to reconfigure some lamps for a new apartment.  We had some lamps that were thrift store finds.  We had some lamps from Target and we had some lamps from Walmart.  For some reason, we needed to find a lamp harp because we had bought a new differently sized lampshade.  But, Target didn't sell them.  They sold lamp shades galore, but not a single lamp harp.


A few nights ago, we went to Target and wanted to get some petroleum jelly.  Apparently, the powers that be have decided that petroleum jelly would not be in any of the personal care or makeup sections of the store.  We don't know why.  I suspect it has gone out of fashion since it contains petrolatum.  But, when you need it and can't find it, it really is frustrating.


So, next time, you are rambling through a big box store, take note of what you don't see.

Walmart: Clean Your Bathrooms

Lately, we've been quite happy with the selection of merchandise in our nearest good zip code Walmart.  The stores have been clean, the products have been fronted properly, and the displays look great.  But, there is one little problem.  In my experience, Walmart bathrooms are often an abomination before the lord and a  scar on the face of humanity.

On a recent visit to a Walmart well outside of Atlanta in an affluent low crime suburb, I came across this horror!  The worst thing about this bathroom in not the stall pictured below.  No, the stall right next door was worse.  It had large gobs of fecal matter on the toilet seat.

This bathroom was disgusting and just not right.  If you have to go while shopping in north Georgia, you might as well go find a portable bathroom at a State Fair!  Oh, and you northern suburb people, you know who your are, we know how you poop and you people just aren't right!

How to Sit in a Big Box Parking Lot

Right now, I'm sitting in a Target parking lot.  I've positioned our car in a space so that I'm facing the front door.  I'm in a well-lit area and I can see all around our vehicle.  When my wife emerges from the store, all I have to do is crank it and punch it.  I'll roll up and the passenger door will be right in front of her.

I'm minimizing her chance to encounter a purse snatcher.  Our dog is in the back seat with a deep bark and sharp pointy teeth to minimize our interactions with car burglars, carjackers.  It's the least I can do for the holidays.

Choosing A Favorite Big Box Location

We frequent lots of big box stores.  Not so much for a pleasant shopping experience but because we need stuff.  Over the years, we've developed a few criteria for choosing a big box retailer to frequent.

1. Good prices.
2. Good selection.
3. Well lit parking lot.
5. Safe neighborhood/clientele.
6. Clean bathrooms.
7. Clean and tidy retail space.
8. Available price scanners.
9. Friendly staff.
10.  Quick check out lanes.

It's not a long list, but these things are important.

The Dangerous People of Walmart

Just when I was warming back up to Walmart, my wife has a bad experience in a Walmart store.  Around 9:30 at night, someone came around a blind corner in a Walmart, ran into her cart, and then threatened to start a physical altercation.  This was in the nicest, cleanest, Walmart we could find in the far flung suburbs of our city.  Of course, the incident is not a reflection on Walmart as a company.  It simply reflects the content of the characters you may find in a Walmart near an urban area.

On the lighter side, you see all types of folks at The People of Walmart website.

Walmart - Low Price Paper

When Walmart isn't busy, it can be a great place to shop.

This weekend I popped in for an American-made toilet plunger that cost less than $5.

Last night, I was able toslip in and pick up a ream of paper for only $3.47.

Quick and cheap--that's cool by me.

Walmart Price Scanner Quest

There is nothing more demoralizing than trekking across a big box store in search of a price scanner. 

In John's Creek, Georgia, we crossed the store in search of a price scanner only to find that they had been removed from nearly every pole with a sign.  After reaching the second purported price scanner only to find an empty pole, my wife set her basket on the floor and we walked out.

Gerting pissed and walking out is just one way that we save money when shopping at Walmart.

Not Wandering in Big Box Retailers

This past weekend, we didn't set foot in any big box retail store.  As a consequence, we saved a lot of money.  There must be a life lesson in their somewhere.

Target Cookies and Crackers Sale

Last weekend, Target had the coolest sale.  They had buy one, get one free, on all cookies and crackers except for Pepperidge Farms products.  With college football just about to start, the sale was the perfect time to stock up so that we can make finger foods and snacks for game days.  We got ten boxes of mostly Triscuits and Nabisco cookies.

Target advertised this quick sale on the radio on Thursday and Friday during the evening drive time.  We saved over $17.  I'm glad we had our ears on!

In and Out at Ikea

Ikea makes it hard to just pop in to buy something quickly.  They've arranged it so you naturally wander through a maze of home furnishings.  Ypu usually feel like a mouse on a quest for cheese.  But last week, we went through a little backwards.
     
First, we  went to the cash registers, found a gap in the lines and went in through the exit.  Then we went directly to scratch and dent.  Then we walked through the marketplace.  We bought blue bags, chocolate bars, batteries, and hand towels.  We spent less than $20. 

I guess that's why they want us to go through the whole store!

The Wal-Mart Blues

We popped into Wal-Mart in the wee hours of the morning.  It was around 2:30 a.m. and the back-to-school crowds had thinned out.  Amazingly, we did see one family with a kid in the store.  They are sure going to have fun getting him on the bus this week.

We didn't see much that we needed or wanted.  But, the store was a fairly safe place for a late night walk.  As we strolled through the aisles, we didn't see much that we needed or wanted.  It was a strange feeling.  We did a quick walk around the store and wandered back out to the car.

Like many consumers now, we just don't have much extra money to spend on new stuff.  Wal-Mart reminds us that we are in the cheapest store with the cheapest things.  We felt poor.  We found it upsetting that the only safe place to walk in the area late at night was Wal-Mart. My wife and I shook our heads on the way out.

"I'd like to get rid of the Wal-Mart card," she said.

"Yeah," I said. "Let's kill it."

Why We Don't Shop At Costco or Sam's Club

We don't shop at big warehouse club stores.  There are only two people and a dog in our household.  We live in an apartment.  We don't have the space required to store a two month supply of anything.  It only makes sense to buy in bulk if you have storage space and a big enough appetite to eat all that food.  You can't buy anything that will spoil in bulk unless you can actually consume it all.

We find that it makes much more sense for us to buy small packages that we can consume in a reasonable amount of time.  That drives us towards stores that have smaller package sizes and low prices.  We find ourselves in Target, Aldi, Trader Joe's, and traditional grocery stores like Publix on a regular basis.  Plus, who really needs to buy books, a printer, and an exercise bike when shopping for groceries.

How To Save Kmart

Over the weekend, I saw a $500 blender a Target.  It made me pause and wonder if the chain was leaving working people behind.  Target has gone designer in every category.  Walmart is struggling to keep up.  They want value-oriented upper middle class customers, too.  I hope that leaves a space in the market for Kmart.

Kmart in Cobb County, Georgia

When I was growing up, Kmart was the place cheap parents shopped.  Now, that I'm older, I need to be cheap, too.  But, to succeed Kmart has to improve and differentiate itself from Wal-Mart and Target.

 Kmart has some valuable tools in their toolbox.  For example, they can sell respected Sears tool and appliance brands.  They also have affordable big and tall clothing for men.

But, success is a long road.  In my opinion, Kmart has to do a better job ensuring that sale prices are reflected by floor scanners and registers.  They also need to be faster at processing returns at customer service.  Finally, they need to attract more customers through advertising and great sales.

The Weakest Links: Kmart, Sears, and JC Penney

Can you imagine a world with nothing but Wal-Mart and Target?  It would suck.  They would only sell the items that their computers deem most profitable.   Prices would rise and the diversity of products offered would decline.  We would find yourself in situations like my wife and I found ourselves in a few years ago.  We were looking for a lampshade and we found one.  But, Target didn't have lamp harps so we had to abandon the project.

We need o keep diversity alive, buy shopping at all the different stores.  Buyng something from Sears, Kmart, and JC Penny helps keep them in business.
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The Little Stereo from Kmart

I like Kmart because it helps keep Target and Walmart honest.  Plus, we have a nice Kmart tucked away in suburban Atlanta.  On a recent shopping trip to Kmart, I found a great little stereo system for our apartment.  It only cost $45.  It's not super loud, but it does connect to all my devices.  It's a great little stereo for a small space.  Here is my review:

Compact Stereo Review:  GPX Home Music System with CD Player

GPX Home Music System with CD Player

Features to Look for in a Mini or Compact Stereo

Whenever I visit a Big Box Store, I have to breeze through the electronics section.  I don't really have the money to refresh my consumer electronics right now, but I like to see what's on the market.  Right now, I'm most interested in small stereos called bookshelf, compact, or mini stereos.  They seem like the perfect size for an apartment.  It's also interesting to see about electronics companies are adapting to the changes in the way people listen to music.

Over the past few months, I've distilled the features that I would look for in a bookshelf stereo into one convenient list.  You can read about the best features to look for in a compact stereo here:

How to Buy a Compact Stereo

An Older JVC Mini Stereo

Target has Cool Audio Gear

In our big box wanderings, we've noticed that Target has a great selection of audio gear.  They have Crosley AM/FM radios for $50.  They incorporated ducted tube speakers like you'd see on the Bose Wave Radio and they sound great.   They also have Bose speakers for your PC for about $99.  These too sound awesome!