I’m spending much less at Wal-Mart than before. It has nothing to do with my economic situation. Unlike those Wal-marts I shopped at when I lived in other states, our local Wal-mart is just dirty, unfriendly and full of unfresh groceries.
As for the higher energy price, it does hurt us a lot. But on the other hand, it is interesting to see how it makes cleaner energy worthwile. If it can promote solar energy or eliminate overheated/overcooled office buildings, it may not hurt us in the long run.
Two things –
Why does everyone pick on immigrants? Unless you are 100% Native American (or “Indian” if you prefer that), you have no right to slam immigration. People who come to America from Mexico and Bangladesh and whatever other third world country are doing it for the same reasons your ancestors came here from Ireland or Germany 150-200 years ago. Because they are poor and want a better life for their kids!
Second -
Why does everyone think Target is so much better than Wal-Mart? I worked there for 6 years and they treated me and everyone else being paid hourly like CRAP! Minimum wage and less than 30-40 hours a week unless it was Christmas time. Try paying the rent and utilities on $800 a month. It’s real fun, let me tell ya! They give a piddly amount of money to education so you’ll feel better shopping there when the girl ringing up your stuff has to live with her parents when she’s 24 years and trying to make it through community college to get some job she probably won’t be able to hold on to for more than a year or two because of layoffs.
The only reason you like to shop there is that they have really cool commercials and their stores look modern and clean and they sell “designer” stuff like Isaac Mizrahi. Get a clue. Target = Wal-Mart, minus the pallets of crap in the middle of the aisles.
How would anyone find anything in a Walmart Store??? The only two choices on most items these days is “take it or leave it”. Walmart, get back to basics! If I wanted trendy I would go to the mall!
Yeah for Dollar General!
Budgeting money is key to financial stabililty. Suzy Orman has many financial tips that I have read and tried for myself. Budgeting when money gets tight is one of her mottos. We don’t need that extra pair of shoes if we already have 10 pairs in our closet. We don’t need that extra cup of Starbucks if we have a coffee machine at home and can buy a bag of Starbucks coffee for 9.00 at the grocery store. What’s wrong with public transportation? I pay 12.00 a month for a monthly bus pass to get around the city. Dust off that old bike, buy a basket and head to the grocery store for small purchases. There’s so much that can be done, doing it is key.
Where were all of you “USA only” people when WM did sell a lot of USA products? I can tell you, you were complaining about the price of USA products. Trust me, I was and still am working for them. First of all, WM does not and has not ever treated me badly. They do pay above minimum wage and they pay fairly. Have you ever considered that the lack of customer service is NOT WM but the individual person. WM can not observe every associate every second they are working. If in fact you get bad service you need to notify management along with the persons name who is not providing the service you expect. why are we blaming WM for the economy? I don’t get it. WM has to raise their prices just like everyone else. WM prices are based on what we have to pay for it. WM doesn’t just raise prices for the heck of it. Sure, a lot of times other places prices are lower, sometimes not. We all have to shop around. Those of you talking boycott, what is that going to solve? Sounds stupid to me. Why aren’t you as mad about Bush or the oil prices. WM isn’t the cause for the economy. Our goverment is. Can you remember why so much is coming from china? Remember the tax breaks that were offered years ago? Those people are to blame. American companies should have never been allowed to farm out work! PERIOD! It just isn’t right. Any company that farmed out work is to blame for crappy products. So we need to lay off WM and put the focus back where it really belongs.
I don’t shop for anything anymore besides the essentials, because there is nothing extra to shop with due to the increased prices in the essential items (food, gas, cleaning products, etc) But, if I had the extra money to shop, Wal-Mart is out of the question. The day they decided to iniate the class action suit against Visa/MasterCard so merchants could opt out of limiting card acceptance in their stores, that set a bad tone for me. If you accept credit cards, you should accept all. Get a life!
I haven’t shopped at Wal-Mart in 3 years. I don’t like the fact that they are forcing producers to manufacture products in China. I know it doesn’t matter to them but I just can’t go. I know other stores buy products from China but Wal-Mart is the worst offender.
Everyone has to be kidding. Where do you shop to find products with made in USA? Its not only WalMart but every other store on the block. I had to hunt for a bird house made in the US and forget underwear, could not find any that was US made.
I am curtailing my driving, went one month on a tank of gas. Buy only specials at the grocery store where I also read the labels to see where the product came from. Have started a victory garden……growing my own from seed, going ORGANIC. Conserve home electric and almost eliminated eating out. Have also started to do a lot of my own yard work.
We are seniors, not broke yet and don’t intend to be…but who knows. If the government cannot control their spending and balance their budget, then many people will not be able to balance theirs. It’s time they grew up in Washington.
They frowned on Mitt Romney ideas because he ran a business and said running a business was different than running a government. They were wrong….that is why they are failing ….Government is very much like a big Business and if you do not take care of that business, it will not be able to take care of you.
Young people, cut your spending, save, reduce any of the monthly expenses you can. Delay any large purchases that will result in using your credit. Tighten your belts and prepare for the long haul. It’s survival of the fittest.
“Off Topic (but not too far off): Let’s insist all government employees pay into Medicare just like the rest of us–Posted By JKA Arcadia, FL ”
I am a government employee and I pay into Medicare. Whe I retire I will have to pay for health insurance to supplement Medicare, just like anyone else.
I am a small gift store owner and find these comments extremely interesting. I would like to thank Tessa for her comments and wish there were more people in our community who has the same compassion for their communitiy.
Most small businesses are not doing well these days (just check in on any business forum), and no, Victor, it’s not because we are greedy or overpriced! Most small business owners do it because they love what they’re doing. They love going to work every day, communicating and actually talking with their customers, they love the comments they receive, they love the satisfaction of making someone happy! They don’t do it to make money. If you would talk to any small business person, if they ever sat down and figured out their actual hourly wage, I would bet my house it would be below the poverty level! Most people will not work 16-18 hour days and not get paid for it. Try going to Wal-Mart and asking them for free gift wrapping. Or, for a box for that small gift that doesn’t come with one.
Small retailers are not getting rich and have the same concerns as everyone else. I for one have not had a paycheck for the last five years. Every cent my business generates, which trust me, is not great, is reinvested in the business. My sales for the last five days have been less than $100 total.
Small business owners just don’t have the “buying power” that Wal-Mart or any other big box store does. Our shipping costs are 15-37+% on every item we purchase. We cannot call China and set our own prices and get our products with no shipping costs. If you want Wal-Mart’s business, you allow them to dictate these conditions to you. Wal-Mart doesn’t only pay Americans minimum wage, they pay their China contacts even less! The only one making money or saving money here is Wal-Mart!
I carry some of the exact same dishes another well known department store does. Mine are priced at $9.95 – theirs are marked $11.95. Theirs go on 1/2 price sale regularly, making their price $6. They sell considerably more than I do. With their buying power, they do not lose money until they have to price them at 85-88% off – I lose money when I sell at 50% off on most things.
My telephone lines cost more than residential. I do not get FREE checking because I’m a business. Know what you pay for high speed internet at home? Double that and add $15 – that’s what I pay. Commercial businesses, big or small, pay to keep residential prices down on most things like that.
And all the donations we get hit for. Every week there’s someone wanting something for nothing. And how many times has that person shopped in my store – zip, zero, nada.
It’s supposed to be: you buy from me, so I can buy from them, and we can both give back to our community. I also pay “personal property taxes” and other taxes that an individual does not – and probably never heard of – because I’m a business. When a community buys locally, those extra business taxes we business owners pay are supposed to go back into the community – reducing your property tax liability. It no longer works that way! Small towns cannot afford to rely on this any longer.
And, my friends, it’s only going to get worse. When small town stores cannot give back to their communities with donations and volunteers – more and more individuals will be expected to pick up the slack. Try getting a local donation for whatever fund from Wal-Mart.
Remember when we were told HMO’s were the best thing in the health care industry? Right now you cannot get a conventional insurance policy. With all these shoppers feeling Wal-Mart prices are so cheap, I would ask you to do an item by item comparison and see how much your local food stores differ. In our area, our local food stores are considerably less. Prices for the same product even differs between Wal-Marts.
So, with Wal-Marts moving into towns, small businesses being forced to close, food stores closing, and Wal-Mart’s employees being treated like second class citizens, you will find prices continually rising – and rising – and rising. And just like insurance, you can’t do anything about it because there won’t be any place else you can shop. They will have taken over everything. It is now their game and they can just pick up the ball and set their own prices.
It is business to them. Customers don’t mean anything, employees are just numbers, there’s no compassion, there’s no personalization, no caring, nothing. Just business. The rich will continue to get rich – and, well, you know the rest.
If you cannot tell by now, I do not shop at Wal-Mart and never will. It’s a shame how many of my elderly customers still think everything in Wal-Mart is Made in America (you know, the way it was when they first opened).
This is not an indication of bad times. It is more people like me, who are against the flood of Chinese products, dumped on us by companies like Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart exports good paying jobs, drives out small town business, and pays minimum wage. This is not a recession, it is a rejection.
I’ve never shopped at Wal-Mart. Mercifully, there aren’t any in Chicago, at least not on my side of town. I try to spend as much as possible at local, neighborhood stores rather than national chains, but it is getting nearly impossible. I would rather spend more on fewer, higher quality American-made products, than spend less on a shopping cart full of junk from China. But yes, I am spending only on essentials now. Gas, electricity, groceries… all eat up my money leaving little for splurges.
I stopped shopping at Wal-Mart a few years ago because I want to buy as many American made products as possible in my attempt to “green” up my life. Plus I didn’t like every time I went to a Wal-Mart I saw a mother screaming and abusing her children. It once took me over 20 minutes to flag down an employee to help me with a desk I was interested in purchasing, but instead I left. I think it’s interesting that someone says that WalMart is putting the little guys out of business because small businesses are “greedy”. Annnd… Wal mart isn’t? Coming from a small town that was based on small locally owned businesses, I know that the biggest advantage to having small businesses is the quality of customer service. You get to know the owner enough and they’ll sometimes cut you a deal, which feels a whole lot better since you know you’re not just getting a deal because some poor Chinese girl was working in a factory all day making your product for just dollars a day, or whatever ridiculous wage they receive. Small business owners were doing well, now a Wal Mart came to town and they are out of business, possibly now working at Wal Mart for next to nothing and get treated like a number. It’s digusting.
When it comes to food, guess what’s pretty cheap and really good for you? PLANTS! I spend MAYBE about $20 a week on groceries buying mostly fruits and vegetables and it keeps me all week. No need for cheap, processed, preserved disgusting boxed food from Wal-Mart.
Of course I’m spending less. I’m a college student, with little hopes of finding a decent job that pays me more than minimum wage ($6.50/hr) where I can only work about 15 hours a week due to being in school full time. The loans I have make me cringe as it is. I spend my money on nothing except for essentials. The stimulus package of $600 in returns is going to do nothing to the economy because I am simply going to save it and use it towards rent and bills. With the winter in Wisconsin this year, for a small one bedroom apartment I’m seeing heating bills of almost $100 a month. You wonder why so many college students seem to suffer from depression? Money is a HUGE issue for us since we feel as though we should be growing into adults and depending less on our parents, but not being able to make it in this day in age because we simply can’t afford it!
Americans have become too greedy as a whole and feel like they need all the nicest things, and maybe 10 or 15 of them while millions around the world would probably faint at the sight of inside a Wal-Mart. Everything about this country is simply in excess, from products to food to devices to children with ADD and fat people. More is not always better. Can’t we see that by now?
I’m spending much less at Wal-Mart than I used too and it has nothing to do with my economic situation. I’m just tired of the poor service I experience nearly every time I’m in a Wal-Mart store. I’d rather do business with a company that employs people who have answers to my questions and not the standard “I don’t know. I don’t work in this department” line.
I actually spend more – prices on milk, butter, eggs, etc. has gone up 25-75%, even at WalMart.
It’s still the cheapest game in town though, reasonable quality for the buck.
I don’t believe the “satan-mart” propaganda, local businesses died because they were greedy and unorganized, not because Sam Walton opened a store.
Yes, I’m cutting back everywhere possible so I have a nice chunk of cash to invest in high yielding stocks once the DOW falls below 10,000.
Well people, let’s do some simple math with big numbers… 800 billion (spent on Iraq) divided by 300 million Americans… That’s $2,667 per American… Could you use an extra $2,667 per person in your household about now? Too bad, it’s spent.
I visited Walmart and put a few items in the cart but noticed everything was made in China. With traitors such as Walmart I felt it was patriotic not to purchase these items and left the store. The only one’s that would suffer would be the communist Chinese and the traitors in business and government that support them. I thought our government would more to protect the jobs American people.
Spending more at Wal-mart due to high costs at other stores. They are $.50 plus less on basic grocery items than everyone else.. Gota Save
We have seriously curtailed our shopping, not only at Walmart but at Circuit City, Staples, Sam’s Club, restaurants, and every other store. President Bush announced in a speech in India that the outsourcing of jobs was good for America. (Does that sound ridiculous to anyone else??) So now we manufacture almost nothing and rely on the service industry (which is being outsourced for cheap labor) as our main source of income. Our national debt is off the chart, our trade deficit is unbelievable, and our politicians are lining their own pockets. Wake up America.
Off Topic (but not too far off): Let’s insist the President, Vice President, Congress, the Post Office, and all government employees and retirees pay into and participate in Medicare just like the rest of us–no special retirement insurance benefits. That way they’ll have some incentive to fix the Medicare problem.
It would be interesting to see how the smaller neighborhood oriented stores(where they still exist) are doing these days. I like the Walgreen on the street with a bus line for milk, eggs, crackers, bread, cereal, toiletries, cosmetics, and vitamins. Excellent sales and prices. Limited choice but who has time to walk through a Walmart store for a few items?
When I have time to cook, Central Market, Whole Foods or Culebra Meat Market No. 5 have the best tasting produce, condiments, and meats. What else does one need to eat well? Oh the downtown Macy’s, also on all the bus lines, has great clothing often on sale. Going to Walmart requires a special trip on an expressway which is always under construction. Why go through all the hassle? It might be different if one had many people living in the same household, but for aging baby boomers still in the work force, forget it.
With everything climbing in cost… including gas, medical costs and food. It is impossible to be able to spend like I did this time last year even. I just can’t afford it in a one paycheck household. I have already cut down driving anywhere other than to and from work and once a month to doctor’s offices. I can’t cut any more than that. So other than the driving I had to cut somewhere else and it became shopping for anything more than the bare essentials.
I find all of these comments interesting.There is a great disparity of backgrounds and financial status evidenced here. I have always thought that life is a series of choices and where we end up is a direct result of those choices.Some people were offered more choices obviously when it comes to education. The American Dream has always been supported by how much effort you want to put into it. Working your way through school has gone away as students now just pile on debt (much of it for non-school related items, such as stereos, clothes, etc.) and then complain about having to pay back the low interest loans they got from the government. I feel very bad for those that are in a financial pinch that is not of their own doing, but I have no sympathy for those who arrived there by making poor choices. WalMart is not the “evil empire” many people make it out to be. They are satisfying a need or they would not exist. I personally do not shop at WalMart unless it is a necessity. I also despise their poor customer service. But, truth be told, I don’t shop much at all. I make enough money to purchase what I need and make decisions to avoid just buying what I want. Wouldn’t the world be a better place if we all did?
We need to start thinking about how to help our country revive, and help the U.S. retailers. Quit buying ‘made in China’. Quit hiring illegals that send our money to Latin America. Quit buying Japanese vehicles, reduce our imports, get our country back on track, like we should be doing to our personal financial health. America is still the greatest country, but big business now rules the country, and we need to show them that we’re not puppets, and support local shops/entrepreneurs, boycatt Walmart’s cheap China stuff.
UNTIL THE MONEY GUT OIL INDUSTRY DECIDES TO COME DOWN ON GAS PRICES. I INTEND TO HOLD ON TO MY MONEY AND ONLY BUY ESSENTIAL GOODS.
BE SMART…HOLD ON TO YOUR MONEY TOO AND SAVE SAVE SAVE!! WHEN THE STORES ARE EMPTY AND THE RETAILERS ARE HURTING, THEY’LL COME DOWN ON THEIR PRICES AND RESPECT YOU AS A CUSTOMER A LOT MORE. THEN, CONSUMERS WILL HAVE THE UPPER HAND.
We never have shopped at WalMart, and never will. The products are cheap and not worth the money. Also, they treat their workers miserably. We are headed to a major recession/depression that will be worse than 1930. Don’t spend your government “rebate” check; save it or use it to pay off debt. If you can, buy gold. It is the only thing that will be worth anything.
“all these comments are from people who obviously do not know anything about wal-mart. 1.2 million employees making an average of 11.00 an hour would really like you to shop with them
Posted By who knows, lexington ky : February 7, 2008 1:21 pm”
Where in the heck did this person come up with an AVERAGE of $11/ hour for Walmart employees. That figure must include the Waltons because Walmart pays minimum wage to it’s floor employees. And minimim wage is no where near a living wage.
I personally have always been a thrifty shopper and I haven’t shopped at a Wal-Mart for years anyway. First of all, the prices at Wal-Mart are as high or higher than drug stores like CVS, but CVS actually puts things on sale and offers incentives making things much cheaper (and sometimes free with clipped coupons). Also, I’ve considered Wal-Mart to be a big part of our economic problems for awhile. I’ve seen small towns all over the country go from being self-sufficient and viable for small businesses to ghost towns after the Wal-Mart comes to town and runs everything out of business. In fact, I lovingly refer to Wal-Mart as “the devil” and everyone knows what I’m talking about.
My assessment is that this “rebate” will be borrowed from China and used to purchase Chinese goods at Wal-Mart. So it seems that the ONLY American beneficiaries will be the Wal-Mart heirs, who already represent some of the richest individuals in the country.
I’ll be using my rebate check to fund my ongoing unemployment. With a MBA and years of experience, I can’t even get a job at McDonald’s (I’m overqualified). I don’t care if the economists are saying there’s no recession, there’s a recession going on in every household I know.
If you like China go to walmart
Radio shack, big 5, etc..
Our fearless leaders are only interested in their stock portfolio.
The have driven us into a third world economy, thank god for, Russia and Iran, who remain defiant against this government, they are tooling up their defense and see what this government is all about, take from the weak and feeble. And live rich by fleecing the sheep (the rest of us). And that’s why we have illegal immigrants too, for more fleecing!
Like with a big company that fails..you always look to the CEO and middle management and you cann their sorry #$%&s!
Funny how Bush and his cronies are a bunch of x-oil folks, funny how we now pay through the nose for energy, am the only one whos sees this connection?
My purchasing habits haven’t changed at all. I still buy gas to get to work, fresh foods to eat, and clothes to keep warm. Retailers that sell essentials like WalMart won’t feel the impact as bad as businesses counting on big vacations, or other lavish big ticket items.
A better question would be “Are you spending less at Best Buy or other retailers that sell expensive entertainment products?”
Though I’d love a 52″ plasma HD-TV I think I’ll wait until the economy is a little more stable to make that purchase.
People who have been living outside of their means will have to adjust, and that is good for everything except the morale of the one doing the adjusting.
The fast times are gone for now. Our beloved Government wants us to spend like crazy in the perverse idea that doing so will fix the economy. But how do you expect consumers to spend when they are already in debt to their ears? Better jobs and more opportunities will lead to better incomes and then more spending. The Feds should know this but everyone is rushing to pump a little something for a quick fix. Government should be doing more to encourage business to invest and hire here at home. Government should be spending money to improve infrastructure like roads, rail, airports, broadband access as those things create jobs, increase productivity and make all our lives better. It is time for CHANGE and it will come in November.
Now while we are all tapped out, here is what to do to save your own pocketbook:
1. Shop at small grocery stores like Aldi. You’ll save $30-100 a week on your food.
2. Bring your lunch to work. You’ll spend $3 or less for lunch instead of $7-10. That is about $25 a week savings.
3. Don’t gun your car or slam your breaks. If you see a red light up the road, take your foot off the gas now. The gas mileage improvement is amazing.
4. Review your cable, internet, phone bills and more. Get an antenna for local channels and save $5 or more a month. Or do without Cable it is all junk.
5. Wait for movies to come out on DVD instead of going to the theater.
6. Eat out at less expensive restaurants. Why does a hamburger or salad nowadays cost over $10 at some of the fancy places? Ridiculous!
7. Time your purchases. Buy windshield washer fluid in March, grass fertilizer in October, and buy your Valantie Roses this weekend. Be smart
This may all not be what the government wants you to do but where have they been there for us over the past 7 1/2 years?
Ok, so far I have lost my house, my car and now my girlfriend and I just moved back with my parents. I stopped shopping at Walmart because their prices have jumped so high. My company brought in some H1b Visa’s(Foreign Workers) and I had to train them before I was let go. My buddy works as a tuck pointer(brick layer) but can only get me $7.10 an hour because a lot of immigrants are driving the wages down. I just don’t know what to do? I’ve lost 30% percent of my savings since the dollar dropped and the interest rates on my savings account is like 1%. I feel like I live in a third world country! I have a bachelors degree in Information Technology, but I will probably end up working at McDonalds….what has happened to this country…the little people are really hurting….
WalMart has horrible produce, meat and customer service near where we live. I buy ONLY the items there we can’t get cheaper somewhere else or if I’m in a pinch.
We’ve cut back on almost all of the extras and only purchase the necessary items and usually that’s at Target or the grocery store shopping the weekly advertisements. Even better…we haven’t been missing those extras! We live in a society that thinks you have to buy buy buy…it’s insane.
Save your ‘tax rebate’ or pay off debt…DO NOT SPEND IT!
Spening less, due to higher prices and poor quality goods made in China. Would rather do without than buy such low quality products.
We don’t buy anything but absolute essentials except twice a month when we have just gotten paid and can restock on the regular essentials. I’m depressed every time I have to go to Wal-Mart because every trip to Wal-Mart sucks your soul a little.
Stop all the impulse buying and see how much you can save. If you impule buy because you are down and out depressed well let me tell you, you will be depressed when you have no money for necessities. They will really roll the prices back when people stop spending unnecessarey $’s. They are in the business to get people to spend money. They sure will not pay your bills when due if you spend all your money there. Start thinking ahead and especiall when shopping in Malls. The sales people are in the business trained to make you buy thinking you getting a deal on your purchase,. well why don’t you just say no thanks and walk away with the best Deal. You still have the money in your pocket. Americans are big suckers for the want of spending money on things they really do not need. Make a list when going to the store and do not buy anything else but that. You will save money. After all it takes money to make you happy. Think about it. The rich get richer on your money and you get poorer and poorer. The rich only care about your money not you. Be frugal like the rich.
I rarely shop at Walmart. If I do it’s because they are open later than other stores. In the last 6 mo. I bought quite a few things, but now there just isn’t much to buy. If you have a solid wardrobe and all the novel trinkets someone could ask for…why go out and buy more things? I also do much more shopping online there is usually a shipping or tax incentive and they offer better selection and prices. Places like eBay are also great places to get used products like video games at almost half the price.
My senior income has forced me to cut back on all but essentials. Don’t have money for Wal-Mart or other stores.
Not a rosy future in store for many of us.
Walmart has this thing called Rollback yet they never have the merchandise you go in there for so I just say rollback and go some other place. They are not the cheapest by any means and they have this thing to make it look so good shopping and the next thing you know, you are buying more than you really need and they just keep getting richer while the american people just keep going in debt over unnecessary purchases. Just say no to WalMart and roo your prices back in your wallet and have more money. These stores make out like they are having such a bad economical time they have more money and just want people to spend spend spend so they can lay off the poor underpaid employees by saying times are bad well they will still be in business when you loose your home and they do not care.
I haven’t bought anything besides grocery and gas since before Christmas. Part of the reason is we are in the process of buying a house. Which we will furnish buy shopping 2nd hand, craigslist & garage sales only.
In case your wondering we are a dual working family making well over median income a year.
A better question would be: at what future point will Wal-Mart fall, unable to hold up its own weight?
The bigger they are, the harder they fall, like dictators, politicians, and Rome.
I’ve definitely cut back. Walmart has boosted prices everywhere, especially in grocery – Coffee creamer jumped from $2.26 to $2.96. Spray Parkay jumped from $1.12 to $1.22, Plain blah generic bread jumped from 48 cents to 96 cents a loaf. All the fruits and vegetables have risen sky high …… So now I do without or shop elsewhere. Everywhere in WalMart the prices haven’t fallen like the commercials show, but have jumped to bilk more from the consumers wallets. I try to avoid Walmart now as they are more expensive than Kroger, Save-a-lot, Aldi’s and Dollar General here in Southern Ohio. Walmart need to take the Meijer Slogan and change it slightly to fit the Walmart shopping experience now …. WALMART —- HIGHER PRICES —– LOWER STANDARDS.
A big percentage of Wal-Mart shoppers are immigrants, legal and not.
If our borders were better controlled, big-box stores would not have proliferated to this extent.
The only way to slow down their growth is to boycott them; I doubt this will ever happen; shoppers are like cattle, following the herd.
No, I don’t shop them. Yes, I’ve cut back.
yeah im feeling it to like everbody esle the cost of gas&food 4$for a gallon of milk 4$ orangejuice 4$ for a loaf bread this out of control the wonder every thing is falling apart in this country! screw retail!greed i will not be buy anything from walmart.
just like everyone else I am trying to cut back as much as possible, I find that every time I go to Walmart the prices are different, they may be low one week but are higher the next. So you think you are getting a bargain but if you don’t pay attention you find your paying almost double for the same item. Everything has gone up so much it makes it hard to get from month to month, I don’t know how people with children are able to make ends meet.
I do not shop at Walmart.CUSTOMER SERVICE is not what it use to be. In my eyes the way I see it is we are losing the value of customer service thanks to WALMART. The atmosphere at Wal-mart has negatively changed over the past couple year, and I thinking it’s upper-management issues that are are trickling down to their individual stores. The employees do not seem happy at all. I rarely see any of them smiling anymore, EVER. The way I see it if they are not happy with their jobs how can they worry about making any one else happy.
Of course I am not buying as much at Walmart or other similar stores. With gasoline prices well over $3 a gallon, I either shop at dollar type stores or go without.
Now that they have saturated America, the big-box stores are driven to establish themselves overseas, India and China in particular; some already have.
This globalization mania is eventually going to drive all the little guys out and the world will be controlled (if it isn’t already) by a small group of magacorporations.
They could be boycotted.
Any company, W-M included, which wants to pave over the land and clutter it with ugly, boxy stores, buy its goods overseas and drive out the small businesses will not get my dollars.
We once did OK without them; we can again.
People shop W-M for only one reason: lower prices.
They’re willing to put up with packed parking lots, crowded aisles and counters and time-consuning checkout lines to save a few bucks.
I don’t have the time or patience.
Actually, prices are often competitive at other stores if one checks.
Shopping should be low-stress.
“Give people what they want, and they will beat a path to your door.” That’s an old selling adage, and Wal-Mart has played it to the hilt. So did Henry Ford and K-Mart.
The downside is landscape pollution and market domination, driving out the small businesses.
As a rule I don’t shop at any of them.
I’m not sure why so many people do not want to shop at WalMart because many of their products come from China. Most companies source the majority of their products overseas. I’m not sure where you can shop and still buy American made goods. The companies that make the profits are still American companies that Americans work at. For every job that is shipped overseas, 8 more are created domestically as goods are cheaper, people buy more and American companies and consumers reap the benefits. Many complained that the costs of goods have gone up, these same goods would skyrocket if they weren’t made abroad.
WalMart delivered on what Sam Walton envisioned when he was alive back in the early 1990s. They will now destroy anything in its path and only redirect its intentions (or motives) to be only when it is imperative for improved public relations. Did you know that Target has been secretly giving away 5% of its sales to the education and the arts ever since it opened its doors? They also do it because they care. Not because they are trying to make people like them. I refuse to set foot in a WalMart or Sams Club. As for the “Rollbacks” mentioned earlier… WalMart strategically marks down certain items that trigger the buyer to think their prices are low and then increase the prices of other goods to compensate the loss. Misleading, very misleading. Not everyone falls for it.
I don’t shop at Wal-Mart because I despise the way they do business both here and abroad. Their mantra is “destroy the little guy.” I’ll shop the little guy instead.
As for my spending overall, I’ve cut back my spending by 25% and anticipate cutting back even more over the next 6 to 12 months. Things don’t look good here right now.
Wal-Mart-nyet. I’m a senior working 10 years beyond retirement age since I don’t have a pension, and S.S. can’t even begin to cover living expenses. Shopping is out except for essentials.
I don’t see how my peers on a fixed income can make it if they live in a high cost of living area.
Not a pretty picture for most seniors.
Wal-Mart and a number of other big-box stores are polluting the landscape and homogenizing America. If at all possible I don’t shop at any of them.
My environmentally aware brother never sets foot in a Wal-Mart; he says he refuses to enrich China or the Waltons.
I have shopped there off and on since a store went in nearby, but no more.
If I need something, Target usually has the same goods at similar prices, and it isn’t such a ratrace to park and check out.
Recently I have cut way back on all non-essential purchases; my paycheck can’t keep up with escalating prices. The future isn’t looking too rosy for working Americans.
I think most everybody is feeling the pinch these days. I have to travel 50 miles a day for my job and it’s very costly. I have a 4 cylinder car but, stop and go traffic drinks too much gas. The products I sell are considered a luxury and not a need which, causes my income to fluctuate drastically making any kind of financial planning difficult. My fiance and I do shop at Walmart because we are limited on our grocery store choices and the prices seem more reasonable. Thank God for dual incomes!!! Between electricity, gas, and our modest home mortgage we have little left for any extra’s. Glad to be with a understanding woman.
Are you kidding? Not only at Wal-Mart, but I have curtailed all shopping except for food and needed drugstore items.
Most seniors and families with children are caught in a financial vise right now.
All signs point to an economy that is going to get worse before it improves.
all these comments are from people who obviously do not know anything about wal-mart. 1.2 million employees making an average of 11.00 an hour would really like you to shop with them
Like many others, I’ve noticed that the price of everything has gone up the past six months or so–while at the same time, the big oil companies are posting record profits. No wonder–my electic bill as increased about 30%, for the same KW usage; it costs about 40% more for gas to get to and from work (leisure driving is out of the question–same for vacation), and top that off with exhorbitant increases in homeowners’ insurance which has increased my monthly mortgage payment by nearly 50% in two years.
Who has money for ‘extras’ anymore? Oh yeah, the big oil execs have it all.
i will not shop at walmart due to all the china products, we need to be buying USA merchandise. I am glad Wal Mart is hurting.
I don’t shop at WM at all (there isn’t one close by and I just couldn’t stomach it anyway) but I do like Target for our everyday household items. I find I really have to shop around to get the best prices and sometimes that’s just more gas than it’s worth. Luckily we have a lot of great neighborhood places to shop but for stocking up at good prices, it’s Target or Costco.
try getting through the check-out…i had a carraige full of paper goods and a 20 person line at each register…i left the carraige there in the aisle and got my stuff at market basket,for a few pennies more…i would have waited 20 minutes in the kine….my time is more important.
I cannot spend much less than I do currently, as I no longer shop at Walmart. Since their debacle with Mastercard a few years back, I have thus found other stores who actually want my business, and accept whatever form of payment I choose during that shopping visit. I also do not agree with their “demanding” way of doing business with suppliers – it’s unethical and I choose not to support such behavior.
When I read these comments I feel a negative sentiment coming from the very people who were perhaps just as at fault as the rest of big business and the Bush administration. Globalization of our economy, in my opinion, has created a safety net for our very apparenlty fragile economy. As our consumer spending slows domestically foreign investments, inflated from our push for globalization, will offset some of the negative aspects of our current market. In fact I would argue we would be facing a depression like the great depression of the 1930’s if it were not for the Wal-Mart’s of the world. At least you do have a job right? Would if you lived in utter poverty like the most of the world? Maybe if the general American public was not so greedy themselves and actually saved money and didn’t purchase those overly expensive homes and big TV’s over the last 10 years maybe you would have a little more money to spend at the grocery store? Just food for thought. No pun intended.
There’s never any reason to shop at Wal-Mart. There are always alternatives. No, you shouldn’t even buy food from them. Definitely do not buy drugs from them, since almost all their generics come from Asia and are dangerous. Wal-Mart is a company that needs to fail. They care only about profits and they will get them, even if it means the destruction of the United States. They are only the “log price leader” until they have destroyed all the competion in an area. After that, their prices are just as high as anywhere elsse, but you get crap for your hard-earned money.
The IRS delay in updating publications/forms has had a huge impact on consumers not being able to file tax returns yet. Thus, not getting cash into the hands of the people who rush to file at the beginning of the year. The ones who are living paycheck to paycheck and counted on having the money.
Absolutely! Not b/c of personal economic problems, my husband and I have stopped shopping as frequently at Wal-mart for several reasons.
There has been an increase in overall disorganization/miscommunication (I could write a BOOK on this one!), decline in produce quality, and blatant price scams (ie-End aisle products advertised at one price we have personally found the same item IN the aisle at a cheaper price).
Even though prices are more expensive on certain items at Publix, we have decided it’s worth it just not to be in Wal-mart to shop there instead.
The atmosphere at Wal-mart has negatively changed over the past year, and I believe it’s due to upper-management issues that are finally trickling down to their individual stores. Most of their employees seem to hate working there (I rarely see any of them smiling anymore, EVER). My grandmother has been working at Wal-mart for over 10 years, and she has no added benefits to speak of than when she first began.
I believe this is just the beginning of the downfall of the Wal-mart empire…and while the economy may contribute to a quicker tumble, at the end of the day, they’ll have no one to blame but themselves for their own failures. I don’t foresee any positive changes ahead for this company, mostly because they seem to be blind to their own customer/employee dissatisfaction.
I have come a long way in the last few years in cutting down on impulse buying. I still make name brand purchases at Walmart due to the low prices. I try to avoid items manufactured in China. Most of my purchases are confined to groceries , paper, and cleaning products. I get most of my clothing at JC Penney; reduced by clothing budget by 75% in 2007 without feeling any pain at all. One reason I’ve cut back is that I’ve run out of space to store all the stuff I’ve already accumulated over the years. However, if we all cut back drastically and simultaneously, then fear of recession will result in the real McCoy. There is no doubt that the US needs to cut back on its debt spending, but we should try to do it gradually so that there is not a shock to the economic/financial system. After all, what good does it do to save $100 if your just going to either put it in a savings account that doesn’t even earn the rate of inflation or put it in stocks that are falling because everyone who used to be spending is now saving. The only answer that will avoid major disruption is steady, disciplined incremental change. Unfortunately, Americans usually don’t have the patience for that.
No, I’m making more money than ever, spending it like wildfire, and it’s all going straight to China!
My Chinese stocks are doing great! At this rate I’ll be ready to retire next year.
I try not to shop at Walmart. I shop the clearance section when there. I use other chains like Walgreens to take advantage of “free after rebate” items. This often helps with personal care items. I only pay tax! I also shop online. Walmart is only interested in PURE PROFIT. And no, they don’t generally have the best prices, but if you make them price match, you can do okay. I use these shortcuts and many more to reserve my money for the gas tank. Even with a 4cyl car, it still hurts to spend almost 40.00 to fill up. The Government is going to have to address the real problems like petroleum, predatory lending, consumer debt, consumer interest, and food cost…which they will not do. After all, the Bush family is an oil family.
When a company like walmart purchase from china. They pay only 5cents and sell for $1.05 So when the price is $7.77 It realy should be $3.33 And what I want to know is how all the big corperations get away with paying min wage And no bennifits. When those are the tax payers that support the $25.00 to $50.00 an hour government jobs. Is that why we have trillions of state fed. dept.
Someone indicated how Walmart’s “Rollbacks” work. They indicated that walmart will roll a price back on particular items in the store, but to compensate for that they will increase the price on other items in the store. Maybe that explains why the garbage bags I buy have increased almost %100 percent. There are many other items, but that stood out to me. If people only knew. I won’t buy meat from Walmart. They buy the cheapest meat they can get. Someone in the industry indicated that they add a chemical to the hamburger to make it softer. Bleh…I always thought the hamburger smelled funky. Man…stay away from the meat. Support your local meat markets or go elsewhere.
I only buy food at Walmart, I figure about 90% of the things sold in discount stores aren’t much needed by people to begin with. However, in the last year, even while buying the same food every week, groceries have gone up at Walmart at least 30%. My husband drives truck for a living, and I don’t care WHAT THE ECONOMISTS SAY, the economic downturn in this country began in the last quarter of 2006, and I’m not just talking about the housing market. The last economic downturn we had actually began in early 1998 not 2000 or 2001, so the smart people are lagging behind in what they are telling people/workers/consumers. I ask this question: If the slaves in China are only making 37-50 cents an hour, why are prices so high here in America? The corporations sure didn’t pass their saving on to the consumer.
High energy costs have raised all of my expenses, but my paychecks haven’t kept up. I do very
little extra driving other that going to and from work. Most of my monthly budget is going for gas,
electricity, heat, and the added cost of groceries from the “add-on” of higher energy costs to goods.
The oil companies keep racking in huge profits and everyone’s ok with that expect for the consumer.
There’s something very wrong with our government. It’s like burying their heads in the sand
if they don’t know the obvious answers.
I am spending much less at Walmart now because they stopped their layaway program. The places that let me put a layaway on are the only ones who get my business now, because with the price of everything now, who can afford to shop for all of their christmas items or school clothes at once?
I rarely go there now, whereas before, I would put several layaways on per year. Thanks Walmart for making buying for my family that much harder. I’ll take my business elsewhere, where my money, albeit a little at a time, is wanted.
I cannot spend less at WalMart, since I have been making sure that not a cent of my money ends up there for the last 15 years. The best case scenario would be a WalMart that goes out of business.
Anybody who is running up credit card debit shopping at Walmart is a flippin’ idiot. Credit should be used only for big-ticket durable goods, not consumeables, clothing or low-quality appliances. I agree with comment that credit card interest rates are obscenely high, but that’s because there are so many guillible fools who are willing to happily enslave themselves to satisfy their shopping impulse. Wanting something isn’t the same as needing it.
Yeah, we are spending less at Walmart. Locally, our Walmart quality of service is horrible. They won’t take our manufacturers coupons because we got them off of the websites, for one. Other than that it’s just a customer service issue. We’ve started shopping at other local stores to help keep them in business. I was talking the other day to a Walmart employee who probably wasn’t supposed to let this info out, but she said that the store she works at had one million dollars in merchandise go out the door without anyone paying for it last year. I was even in line the other day and a man scans his stuff at the self check-out, put it in bags and left without paying. I said something to the cashier, as did other customers and she never even moved. He just turned around and smiled as he walked out the door. If this is happening at all Walmarts, imagine how much our costs could go down if they only secured their entrances and exits.
I’m done with Walmart.
There’s an old Scottish saying “To buy cheap goods is to support a false economy.” This couldn’t be more true. Say you need a shirt to wear to work. If you go to Wal-Mart, you can get that shirt for $24.95. The shirt is made in a Chinese sweatshop out of the cheapest materials that can be found. It is also very poor in terms of quality of workmanship. The shirt doesn’t fit well and it looks cheap, because it is cheap. If is designed to maximize profit. Or you can go to a finer retailer and buy a shirt of much higher quality for $40. The cheap Wal-Mart shirt will last one or two years before it starts to fall apart. The higher quality shirt will last at least five years. So in five years time, you can have invested $40 for the better shirt or $62.38 for multiple cheap shirts. As you can see, Wal-Mart actually costs you more money per unit time.
I would say that it’s been a couple years since I routinely shopped at Wal-Mart – but I do go about 2x’s a year. The last time I went into the store which just became a super store – I was not impressed. The groceries had a larger selection however I felt the prices were higher – I also looked at the clothing – I was upset because you really couldn’t tell where the depts were and it was a lot of walking – I felt the store was not organized very well and upon leaving I actually told the cashier that I didn’t like the store !!!
I agree with Katie regarding a boycott. Is there anyone with some pull and access to the national media that can get this started? Walmart sells garbage from overseas and they sell returns like they were new! I am sick and tired of picking through everything to make sure I am not purchasing a returned item. They say they don’t put returns back on the shelves. Well, I suggest you change your return tags to avoid that residue it leaves when it is taken off. I suggest re-taping boxes closed aren’t a dead giveaway. If you are going to sell used items, then don’t sell them as new! BOYCOTT WALMART! BRING OUR JOBS BACK! STOP LINING YOUR POCKETS AT AMERICA’S EXPENSE!
I am spending less…period. And, I am sick of imported Walmart Chinese trash. So, that keeps me far away from the distasteful smells of Wallmart clothing. Lord knows what chemicals the Chinese have put in their items. Am bartering more for what I need. That may be the wave of the future, at least for a while. Guess G.B. will still be smirking when he waves from the White House lawn for the last time.
As a merchant for Macy’s in STL I know that consumers are spending significantly less today than in previous years as I see the numbers for the country’s largest national department store. As a side note, I think congress should scratch the tax rebate checks and spend the money on education- a long-term investment in America.
I havent seen a sign of recession, ust a slowdown after a boom period. People think its a recession, because the news harks on it constantly.
I find I get a better value at Target, or Sears than WM. The cheap chinese crud aint cutting it, nor is their philosophy of lowering prices till they put a US manufactuer out of buisness. I just made several large purchases, just not at WM, so my spending wouldnt be reflected in their sales.
Doesn’t almost everyone spend less right after the holiday season? The majority of people have just recently purchased large quantities of gifts and/or groceries, right? Personally, I spent too much money on Christmas gifts and am simply spending less in general.
I am always amazed by the number of people who complain about the state of the economy, and in this instance, Wal-Mart’s alledged role, while browsing at home or “at work” instead of doing something to actually contribute to the economy…
Wouldn’t it be nice if ALL AMERICANS who were fed up with all the jobs being sent overseas would band together for one day and not shop at Walmart. We have been panicking over prices and, I don’t know about you, but I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!
I hope with all my heart that someone with some leverage reads these comments and spearheads and effort with consumers in mind to have a national boycott day of Walmart, and then pick other stores that support overseas labor. BRING OUR JOBS BACK and bring AMERICA BACK!
After a recent divorce and ultimately a bankruptcy, I am spending a lot less money at Wal-Mart or any other large chain. Buying groceries $20.00 at a time doesn’t allow for any extra spending. I, too, find the quality of some items at Wal-mart to be quite poor. Goods made in third world countries are poorly made and not worth the price, however low it may be. When Wal-Mart and the other large stores start offering American-made merchandise, more people may be more inclined to shop.
We never patronize the “big box” stores, and we scrutinize the products we do purchase new for origin. We do not willingly support wage slavery or environmental degradation.
We try to do more with less – though we cannot begin to match the economic reality of most of the world.
My husband and I work at moderate-income jobs, live in a small town, and watch our spending continually. However, the increases in heating costs, gasoline, groceries, and just about everything else, has put us in a constant bind. Our wages have not increased nearly as much as inflation. We haven’t bought clothes or shoes in nearly a year and our old truck is about to give it up. How can hard working, middle class folks like us keep from falling through the cracks in this economy? If we do enter a recession, I fear we will fall through the cracks. We shop at Wal-Mart occassionally but don’t find it any less expensive than other stores closer to our home. Puzzling since they are the big GIANT and supposed to offer the biggest price cuts. Not so here.
Our family is just buying what we need for normal everyday living. All large puchases have been put on hold. We have even decided not to take any vacation for this year. The home heating costs have really taken its toll this winter along with food costs and my property taxes have risen $1500 in 3 years that I have been in my home!! My wife and i have a 6 figure income combined and still are feeling squeezed with all the increased costs. We are not heading for a recession, we are THERE!!
We have cutback because of the increase in gas prices and food prices. There just isn’t much left for discretionary purchases, when the basics eat up your paycheck.
Yes, We are spending less at Walmart. I am not thrilled with all the foriegn products they sell and alot of times their prices are higher than small hometown stores. You have to be careful don’t think you are getting lower prices on every item because you are not. We are working on paying credit cards off and becoming debt free, but lets face it the way things are going we are all going under.
My questions is why doesn’t the gov. regulate the outragous interest rates on credit card companies. If they were made to drop their rates within reason then maybe we could all get out of debit faster and have more money to spend in order to stimulate the economy. But wait then the rich would not be getting richer at the price of the middle and lower class.
Thanks to adopting a lifestyle of voluntary simplicity, we haven’t had to spend less at Walmart because we’ve not lowered ourselves to shop there in years. We been buying second-hand or thrift store clothes and using the savings to pay-off our debts. This “stimulus” package amounts to nothing more than a TAXPAYER SUBSIDY of the retail industry! I can’t stand this type of protectionism…if businesses can’t make it in a free market system, then so be it, they didn’t make good enough decisions when the time counted! As for any check they may send me… I will turn around and invest it in Treasury Bonds!!! Remember “Support the War, buy savings bonds!”? How is buying useless crap the retail industry is built on going to “support the troops”?? No thanks…
I am semiboycotting ChinaMart except for taking my aging parents there to shop. I’m sickened by the crap that’s on the shelves, and NOWHERE is there an American Flag on the manufacturer label. Thanks NAFTA and whoever supported it. I’m sick of that place.
High energy costs have raised all of our expenses, but our paychecks haven’t kept up. We drive a lot less because where we live it costs us $12 in gas just to go round-trip to the mall. So, if we sit home, we don’t shop, we don’t eat out. It’s a big lifestyle change, but when 1/3 of your monthly budget is going to gas, electricity, heat, and the added cost of groceries from the “add-on” of higher energy costs to goods, you have to do something. Anyone who thinks that it was a good thing to move manufacturing overseas to build up shareholder dividends, and shift the economy to largely service is in for a rude awakening. We’re all in deep trouble, and I think the worst is yet to come.
I am fortunate that I make enough money to whether inflation and that my job is pretty much recession-proof. Still, we are already experiencing inflation. I knowthis, since I have not changed my spending habits, but at the end of each month for the last four months, the balance of my checking account has dropped by anywhere from $200 to $400. I don’t know how people on tight budgets are coping.
I have never shopped at Wal-Mart. It isn’t that I think I’m too good to shop there. Rather I have watch Wal-Mart destroy destroy local economy after the next. I prefer to support locally owned businesses for retail purchases. Moreover, Wal-Mart is helping the Chinese economy far more than it helps our own.
If the headline would have read “Walmart Sales up 0.5%” would we take it as a sign that the economy is in tatters? To me all this says is that Wal-mart sales are still doing fine.
We only buy groceries at Walmart. Everything bought at Walmart breaks or is defective product. We even found our Walmart re-packages returned products and re-sells them in the discount bin. That’s what you get from buying China-made products produced by slave-labor.
Just last week we purchase our weekly groceries ($50 budget) and notice many of the items had gone up in price. The next day I just happened to see an article regarding Wal-mart creating there own economic stimulis package by lowering prices..? I’m a little confused!
Yes we are shopping less at Wal-mart. Even with price “rollbacks” I can find better prices/value at other stores, even chain drugstores! With the increase in gas and grocery prices, we are shopping for better prices on discretionary items.
I try my best not to shop at Wal Mart for anything due to “zero” customer service. But overall I am not buying anything at all except necessities.
I have not purchased a new piece of clothing for months. I am keeping the two vehicles I have which are paid off. I am only purchasing what we need, food, gas, heating and still I am struggling. My pay increases for the last three years are less than the year before and way under the inlfation increases. My co-workers and I have discussed this common theme, and everywhere the middle American is suffering. Inflation is wide awake!!! The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.
I second that. We are all spending less everywhere. My Father, Mother and I all lost jobs in ‘07. How can anyone get back on their feet when expenses keep rising? As they face their own difficulties, I’m a recent college graduate struggling to make it on my own AND send money back home. As one generation is crippled with debt the next feels the pinch. Since when did 22 become the new sandwich generation?
Yes I am cutting out Walmart and anyother retail store that sells Chinese made things. I am not going to destory the U.S. economy anymore buy buying foreign made goods just to make the CEO’s of American companies billionaires. They stole our jobs from us so now we need to stole their business from them and give it to made in USA products.
Been buying the yellow “Mad Maxx” deep cycle marine batteries at Wal-mart for our new Solar Electric system. Purchasing solar panels from Alternative Energy Store, hope to purchase more “solar stuff” when those Tax Rebate Checks come. The effect of Peak Oil is setting up a “Long Emergency” situation. We do most of our shopping at Wal-mart and always have. We’ve noticed quite an uptick in prices, especially dairy and grains. We are vegetarians and eat whole foods only. Therefore we have taken a pretty big financial hit since these items went up in price the most. Living close to our jobs helps, we generally spend around $12 to $15 a week on gasoline per vehicle, not too bad. And we don’t have to buy an expensive hybrid. Our local Wal-mart in Madison, AL is a very clean and well managed store, as nice as a fancy mall – without the big prices. With energy supplies decreasing in the future we will have to scale back on many things and find alternate ways of doing things. It will be interesting.
I have started my new year’s resolution. I refuse to buy anything other than groceries at Wal-Mart because the vast majority of their products are from China. I have discovered that with a minimal amount of effort you can find many of the ‘Made in China’ items on-line at ‘Made in the USA’ factories.
I am spending less everywhere and using as many coupons and rebates as I can. I love shopping at WalMart and spend most of my money there. Many people trust that they can get what they need cheaper at WalMart so even though sales might be down, WalMart still has the most faithful customers.
We shop at Wal-Mart becuase we have to. They have the best grocery prices by far. And due to the rising cost of EVERYTHING, that is all I can afford to spend my money on.
a year a 6 months ago, I bought a big ticket item at no interest. I’ve made minimum payments during that period. This month have to pay the balance. Half will come from my pay check the other half will come from savings.
I’m sure there are other people who are cutting back and or facing increasing debt due because they fell for the interest free purchases.
I am spending only what I need to spend and find that there are an awful lot of really good used furniture and clothing items available at second hand stores once one gets over the “stigma” of purchasing there.
Yes i am spending less at Walmart ! It has nothing to do with our awful economy, but that the better named stores ARE competing with Walmart & giving us better product for even less than Walmart. As big as they are they should heve much better prices than they do !!!!
Yes, I am spending less at big retailers. We spend $150 per week in fuel for our vehicles, over $200 per week in groceries to feed our family of five (try fixing healthy meals on less than that nowadays); with how much we have to spend on basic necessities, there is no extra to spend on anything else. The cost of milk is nearly $4 a gallon and a loaf of bread is $3, pay hasn’t increased to match these increased costs so yes, spending is down across America. The middle class is feeling the crunch.
Don’t shop at Walmart they treat their empoyee’s terrible and tell workers who can’t make it on what their paid to get food stamps and insurance from the state. Walmart has cost the American tax payer a couple BILLION just last year.
Walmart is raising it’s prices which no longer makes it beneficial to shop there especially since their customer service is the worst in the retail industry. You may be able to overlook the bad service with super low prices. But, when those prices start to rise plus you have serious bad service, shopping there becomes less appealing.
As long as George W. Bush keeps throwing hundreds of billions of dollars on wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, I will keep my money in my wallet, thank you very much. George W. Bush has just vetoed the SCHIP children’s health insurance scheme, but tens of billions of dollars in aid has just been earmarked for Israel.
Americans, stay away from the greedy corporations and shop at small, independent stores.
I refuse to shop at Wal-Mart. That being said, we are buying less, getting less for our money and wondering how much more the titans of industry will comb from our pockets.
We are all spending less, EVERYWHERE, because our shopping dollar is going less far…the high price of energy is just now STARTING to factor in to the cost of goods and services…prices everywhere are going up in a very noticeable way…not just at YOUR retail gas pump, but at every shipper, transporter and retail dealer you come in contact with. Look at how much your monthly heating and other utility bills have gone up this year…I know that MY paycheck hasn’t gone up commensurate with these cost increases. You have to cut your personal budget somewhere in order to cope…I don’t have anyone to pass on MY cost increases to.
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We started saving as much as we could. This means no extras. No out to eat, no movies no extra spending. For xmass no New debt. If we do not have cash we do not get it period.
FOr easter it was a chicken dinner instead of ham or turkey.
It ’s not about being fearful but strickly prices have gone up everywhere. While salries are just not keeping up.
Here we are fixing to face summer high electricty costs. Time for sandwhiches…..
Big box store no just very basics