Wal-Fart Tries again for New York
 

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/13/ny...egion&emc=ura1

New York Times:
By ELIZABETH A. HARRIS
Published: December 12, 2010

The New York City Council was supposed to hold a hearing this Tuesday about a renewed campaign by Wal-Mart to open its stores in the city.
But it had to be rescheduled, for January.

“We needed a bigger room,” the Council speaker, Christine C. Quinn, said. “We heard from unions all across the city, small business leaders from across the city. It’s a growing list of people.”

Wal-Mart, an inescapable part of the retail landscape just about everywhere except in New York City, twice retreated on efforts to open stores in the city after fierce community opposition.

Now it is back, and mounting an aggressive campaign to crack the country’s largest urban market. Wal-Mart is looking at properties in each of the five boroughs and has hired Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s former campaign manager, Bradley Tusk, to help coordinate its lobbying efforts. ***Go to link to read the rest***

Yes, Wal-Fart! LOL.

I hate Wal-Mart.

A city without Wal-Mart = Heaven

(Super)Target is better if you insist on superstores.

Wal-Mart in Okieland is truly a thing to behold.

People who are too fat to walk around the store and thus must use motorized scooters are practically a dime-a-dozen.

Haven't read the article, but where are they going to put a Wal-Mart? In order to get enough space to stay true to their business model, they'll have to pay out the ass. That's going to get passed down to the customers, which will nix their "always low prices" spiel.

#RetailFail

DC is getting FOUR Walmarts. I am so disappointed.

WTF? Dumb, DC, dumb.

Dallas is a LOT larger than DC and NYC (land area), and the closest locations are 5-10 miles outside of the city center. I don't know how the company plans to put these stores up in the cities and keep prices low.

It's totally true but I couldn't help but to LOL. It's like that in Floriduh as well.

Wal-Marts are like alien invasions and subsequent alien life forms that take over humanity.

Well when you live in a small town like I do, Wal-Fart can be your only option. I will say I have grown to like Kroger and their prices are just as competitive if you have coupons. Oxford, MS does not have enough people to support a Target but I guess I can dream....
Now growing up in New Orleans we never went to Wal-Fart. It was local business all the way!!!!

I think one of the major logic flaws here on Walmart's part (besides the real estate issue) is the fact that their business model heavily relies on the "one stop shopping" pitch (along with the low prices). People who ride the subway/use taxis don't need one-stop shopping, because then they have to figure out how to get all that crap home. It takes me 2-3 trips to unload the car after a box-store trip. I sure as Hell wouldn't want to be doing that at a 10th floor walkup with the meter running....

It all depends on where they are in NYC. In Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx enough people have cars and/or parking near their home, so it wouldn't be an issue. In Staten Island it's suburban enough where virtually everyone has a car. In Manhattan, chances are they'll deliver like Target, Costco, and Bed Bath and Beyond. Other box stores have been extremely successful. Also, with the advent of Zipcar and other cheap car rental services not having a car isn't that big a deal.

They could succeed in Staten Island, and the far reaches of The Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn. Enough people out there live in single-family houses and have cars. I hate Wal-Mart but I think they know what they're doing. I wonder how they'd do since NYC is pretty strong union-wise, but I'm not so concerned real-estate wise.

I hope this doesn't start a trend of putting the stores in/near city centers. I'm not opposed to shopping at Wal-Mart, but I don't want to look at one if I'm in Downtown or Uptown Dallas (or Houston, or Austin,...).

Yep.

Also, people don't always go to Wal-Mart to get bags upon bags of things. Sometimes they want to pick up a loaf of bread, get their prescription from the pharmacy, and check out the new Wii game, all while waiting for their oil change at the Tire Lube Xpress (for the Wal-Marts that have that).

I hate Wal-Mart but it is capitalism at its finest (minus the fair employment model that smart capitalists would use).

Sometimes that one thing grows into 5 or 6 things. I suffer from Target Disease big-time. I go in to pick up a video game for my nephew or a movie, and I walk out with $80 worth of stuff. Damn damn damn!

Does Wal-Mart disease work the same way, or is that just Type 2 diabetes and hypertension? I kid...