Six Flags to plan and brand new park in Nigeria

LostKause said:
They are just trying to make a profit. No corporation can be faulted for that, no matter what they do (right Gonch?). ;)

Never said that, so I'm not sure why you'd address a comment like that to me.

Actually, the way Wal-Mart does business is almost exactly the opposite of what I champion the parks doing and suggest as the best business model.

I choose to not shop at Wal-Mart not because it is evil, but because they have no customer service.

Customer service skills would cost money and drive up those ridiculously low prices, Andy. Low prices are all that matter, you fool! ;)

I got disgusted one time when I went into Walmart because it was the only place open at that particular time at night only to find out that entire aisles were blocked with people stocking shelves. I asked one of them to help me find something. They said they had no clue and then ignored me. I swore I would never buy anything from that store again.

...and Walmart clothes suck. :)

People aren't forced to shop at Walmart and companies aren't forced to sell their products there. I don't see anything wrong with what Walmart does. Walmart doesn't owe anyone or any company anything. The same goes for any company. If they were so terrible they wouldn't be the number one retailer.

They are not terrible. As a business, they do quite well. However, I am one of the few here in America that shops not just for goods, but for the experience as a whole.

BDesvignes said:
If they were so terrible they wouldn't be the number one retailer.

Quite the contrary. They're the number one retailer because they're so terrible.

Do you know anything about monopolies?

How is that? If they are so awful why do people continue to shop there when don't have to? People can shop anywhere they want to, but they go to Walmart.

Walmart is not a monopoly. There is plenty of choice available.

Walmart is not a monopoly yet, but is well on its way to becoming one.

Right now there are still some options. But as they continue to reduce cost by offering lower quality products and people flock to them as a result, more of those options go out of business. That's how the monopoly occurs.

But in reality, I agree with you to some degree. It's not Walmart that's so terrible, it's the short-sighted consumers who continue to shop there.

BDesvignes said:
If they were so terrible they wouldn't be the number one retailer.

You're connecting two numbers that have nothing to do with each other. Is China the "number one" country because it has the most people? Is Kingda Ka the "number one" coaster because it's the tallest? Are the Cleveland Browns the "number one" football team because their colors are orange and brown?

Yes, the company is capitalism in action, but not all aspects of capitalism are moral and just. That's why we have anti-trust laws. Microsoft got harassed by the DOJ for years for using its power in the marketplace to get its way. The Vlasic example seems strikingly similar, and every bit as immoral.

BDesvignes said:
People can shop anywhere they want to, but they go to Walmart.

People are stupid. :)

Gonch, I hope I didn't offend you. That was not what I intended...

I addressed you in my comment because of the many past discussions in which you point out that a company can not be "greedy", no matter what they do. We have gone over it many times. One side of the argument says that anything a business does to make a profit is great, because they are in it to make more money. The other side says that some businesses go too far and act somewhat immoral in the quest for more profit.

As I read this thread, I seem to always recollect the conversations that we have about profits and business. I just find it wierd that some of the same people who are quick to defend a business's questionable actions for profit are the same people demonizing Walmart for doing what it takes to be more profitable.

For the record, I don't think Wal-Mart is greedy.

For the record, I watched that Walmart documentary (which was one sided) on the ill effects that walmart creates on a community.

Yes, alot of it is sad, but guess what? Walmart can't just plop down a new store wherever it sees fit. They have to get the approval of the local government. Some communities have won in refusing Walmart and that is great. However, other communities have opened their arms to let them set up shop giving them tax incentives, etc.

If people are going to throw blame, then throw it at the local government who lets them open up for business.

Walmart will never become a monopoly. Do you see McDonalds being a monopoly in the fast food business?

As far as low quality, sure, walmart stocks alot of cheap crap, but I don't shop at their stores for that. I grocery shop there which is equal to supermarkets, I shop there for electronics , greeting cards, pet food, cooking supplies, etc. It is all name brand stuff.

Unless the name brand products are specifically providing lower quality products to the Walmart stores, I don't buy into this "cheap crap" mentality.

Chitown said:
As far as low quality, sure, walmart stocks alot of cheap crap, but I don't shop at their stores for that.I grocery shop there which is equal to supermarkets, I shop there for electronics , greeting cards, pet food, cooking supplies, etc. It is all name brand stuff.

I've found that for stuff that falls under that umbrella, that the price difference is negligible. The difference between Wal-Mart and Target (and in my neck of the woods, Meijer) is all but meaningless.

Unless the name brand products are specifically providing lower quality products to the Walmart stores, I don't buy into this "cheap crap" mentality.

You just said they stock a lot of cheap crap in the quote above. ;)

Not sure if that happens or not, but did you ever notice how hard it is to find the exact same thing at two different stores. Sizes will be different ro a model number will be one letter or number off. The stores make it very hard to compare in an apples-to-apples sort of way.

In general, I find that if you eliminate the 'cheap crap' from the equation, you eliminate any edge that Wal-Mart has. In fact if you refuse to buy the 'cheap crap' you're gonna end up at another store anyway, so I just go to that store in the first place.

My experience mirrors the following to a great deal (except we often shop at Meijer too - which also has similar prices):

Wal-Mart vs Target

Chitown said:
Unless the name brand products are specifically providing lower quality products to the Walmart stores, I don't buy into this "cheap crap" mentality.

The only thing I can speak to is the electronics. I'm fairly certain that at the very least the electronics companies that make DVD Players and TV's do make cheaper models for Walmart to sell. Prior to one of the Black Fridays I did some research in trying to find some good deals. The model numbers on the products weren't even on the manufactures websites. There were numbers that were on the mfgs sites had similarities though. I tried comparing the features to the products on their site and sure enough, nothing on the mfgs site had as few options as what Walmart was selling. Maybe they only did it for Black Friday to have that cheap item to draw people in. I don't know.

I can't remember any other time when I couldn't take a model number from a store and find the corresponding product on the mfgs website.

After reading that Vlasic article at Fast Company that Jeff posted, I think its quite clear why an electronics company would manufacture a model specifically for Walmart.

and companies aren't forced to sell their products there.

Not in so many words, but in effect, they are. Remember, Walmart owns 11% of every retail dollar spent in the States. If you don't have your products on Walmart's shelves, then there is a nice chunk of the consumer market that never even sees you.

You can choose to abandon that segment of the market---and Gonch's Business Model suggests you should---but many won't take that risk.