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Bill Weber
JANUARY 8th 2000
Yesterday's (Jan 6th 2000), Tomah Journal carried a front page story by Joshus Morby, staff writer, with the headline; “Wal-Mart buys Supercenter Site” detailing the 14 month negotiations of the Wal-Mart corporation and the Wegner family for the purchase of nearly 30 acres of land from Paul & Irene Wegner for 1.6 million dollars. The following paragraphs I took off the Wal-mart Web page" Click on About Wal-Mart, when that comes up, then click on Wal-Mart Story: http://www.walmart.com/story/
When Sam Walton opened the first Wal-Mart store in 1962, it was the beginning of an American success story that no one could have predicted. A small-town merchant who had operated variety stores in Arkansas and Missouri, Walton was convinced that consumers would flock to a discount store with a wide array of merchandise and friendly service. He was right. The company Sam built has become the world's number one retailer. Diversification into grocery (Wal-Mart Supercenters), international operations, membership warehouse clubs (SAM'S Clubs), and deep discount warehouse outlets (Bud's Discount City) has created greater opportunities for growth. But unlike some corporations whose financial growth does not translate into more jobs, Wal-Mart's phenomenal growth has been an engine for making jobs. In 1995, the company created 85,000 new Wal-Mart jobs and supported thousands of U.S. manufacturing jobs. More than 600,000 Americans work at Wal-Mart. (end of Wal-mart article)
The question, I think we as Americans and World Citizens, must ask oursleves, is Wal-Mart’s Supercenter Stores soon to replace our present cities with their NEW CITY? Don’t get me wrong, I also do a lot of shopping at the present Wal-Mart store. But in spite of what Tomah Area Chamber of Commerce director, Eric Prise, says in the article in the Tomah Journal, “that the stores in Tomah are going to have to find their niche.” even stores like Mega and Burnstadts as well established as they are are going to find that, maybe their older customers will stay with them, but the bulk of the expanding population are going to go where they can get the most for the dollar spent and the Piggly Wiggly, franchise is no competition to the Wal-Mart franchise.
I have no quarrel with Wal-Mart, they put out a good product, at a price below what most of their competition is able to do, and that is the core of the free enterprise system in our country. But I think the danger lies in the fact that although, there no doubt is a greater level of employment created by such giant stores. We must remember that such employment is at the cost of the individual entrepreneur, also a part of our free enterprise system.
With Wal-Mart's, online Internet service, and their Supercenter store and their large distribution center, they are set to control the lions’s share of the retail business in the surrounding area. Their online service now makes it possible for anyone to go on line, to purchase what they want, have it delivered almost immediately with the same return policy that they have in most of their stores today. It is obvious that Wal-Mart is positioning itself for the leading vendor in retail sales in this next century and perhaps even this millennium. Perhaps, Tomah will be one of the first truly Wal-Mart cities of the future. Is that what we want and are we willing to pay the PRICE?
Bill Weber