No Wonder Walmart’s Sales Have Gone Down This Year…

I bought a Battery Daddy-180 online from Amazon for $12.99 and Walmart has the same thing listed for $ 27.99. More than twice the price of Amazon. They don’t even seem to be trying at this point. Saw a news article where they are saying Walmart may have to close down stores due to high rates of shoplifting. They don’t manage that well either.

This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »

Heartlander · 80-89, M

I have to imagine that self check-out would be great opportunity for swapping barcodes and by-passing the scanners all together.

I personally rarely use the self-checkouts at any stores. Meanwhile human checkers are fewer and fewer. Thus making it easier to just order pick-up or home delivery and avoid even having to go into most stores.

Noticing all the shuttered storefronts in strip-malls, even in upscale neighborhoods, I suspect that we'll see big announcements of store closings after Christmas.

Whole Foods has been constructing a huge store just a few blocks way. And just 5 or 6 blocks from another Whole Foods, and just a couple of miles from yet another Whole Foods. So one or both of the old Whole Foods will likely close. And they are anchor stores in the two strip malls. I don't see the space being converted to massage or tanning salons, or judo academies.

Most of us have probably seen the news about the Albertsons-Krogers merger, which will likely result in some supermarkets shutting their doors. I believe I've also seen stories about CVS and Walgreen closing stores. Also quite a few other retailers on the brink. Also every fast food place seems to have a posting about job openings, some with a signing bonus, and $18+ per hour starting wages.

The future feels shaky.

cherokeepatti · 61-69, F

@Heartlander When I was working at Walmart 10 years ago they put in 3 self check registers at one end up front. A man was spotted with a razor knife cutting barcodes and Scotching taping on much more expensive items over the barcodes. His level of greed is how they spotted him, he had over 3 dozen items and made his way up front and his spidey sense made him realize he was being watched and he left the store without anything. And people were buying expensive fruits and veggie and putting a much cheaper price code in the register when they were weighing the produce. And sometimes throwing an extra item into the bag without scanning it. So many ways to cheat and steal

Heartlander · 80-89, M

@cherokeepatti

And some checkers feel a need to administer economic equity :)

10+ years ago we were shopping at one of the Walmart super-stores and "oh look! Rainier Cherries!!!"

Rainier Cherries always cost a king's ransom, so if it's been a year since you last enjoyed Rainier Cherries you don't look at the price. You just put them in the shopping cart and buy them.

But then when we checked out and the checker punched in the code, the price popped up: $6.95 a pound. The checker shook her head, said something to the effect: "That's too much, no one should have to pay that much for cherries."

She then voided it and reentered the cherries as "grapes", $1.29 a pound, smiled, and continued checking us out without losing a stroke.

So I carried that "now I owe Walmart at least $6" guilt for years : (

About 8 years later, I almost had that chance to pay them back when they charged like $24 for a 6-pack of tiny beer (the 7 oz size, something not typically carried at Walmart, or most grocery stores). After 20 minutes of waiting to find the store manager they discovered that the price stored in their computer was wrong. The checker had no idea what a 6-pack should have cost, so it was a store managers issue. I wanted to tell her to just give me $12 back and we'd be even. $24 minus about #6 for what the beer should have cost, minus about $6 for the cherries. But, the manager wasn't able to change the computer stored price for the beer without another manager's permission, and they needed that to officially run the price change through the system, so she gave me a full refund of the $24 and told me to keep the beer. So now I have a mental IOU to Walmart for about $12.

cherokeepatti · 61-69, F

@Heartlander There was a large local grocery store that had a big bulk bin of pistachio nuts. They were selling for $5 a pound everywhere else but someone I knew bought some and they rung up about a $1 a pound. He went back at least once a week and got more, had the stored in his freezer. To the store a year to realize they had underpriced them. Raised the price to $6 a pound.

Heartlander · 80-89, M

@cherokeepatti I understand. I was once systems manager for an electronics company and it was almost impossible to manage the pricing of some items. Bulk consumables probably fit in that category. Like the store may buy them from different suppliers where they are measured differently, and may also sell them in a variety of arrangements. In the electronics business one vendor may sell wire by the pound, and another would sell it by the 200 foot spool, and yet another by the foot. Then our company would repackage it into smaller spools, and even then the confusion over 1 each 10 foot spool or 10 feet. So in the confusion it was easy to pay $100 for something and then sell it for $1 :)