Doug Kanter wrote:

"RJ" wrote in message
. ..

drive
past Wally World and show up at Loblaw's. WAIT! Hasn't that
mega-chain
run
Mom and Pop grocers out of business?

Uh....yeah. thirty or forty years ago.

Notice a pattern here?

Maybe a repeat performance, but a pattern would require the same reasons
and
those reasons are NOT the same.

Your reasons below are inaccurate because you interpreted my comments as
being only about supermarket competition.

I focused on your mention of Loblaw's.

I didn't mention Loblaw's. That must have been somebody else.

My point was that WalMart
grew as big as it is because it satisfied shoppers. When a better or
more interesting concept comes along, it will grow at the expense of
WalMart.

That's what's so odd: There IS no concept at Wal Mart. :-) If you believe
there is, can you describe or name it?

A store with most of the mundane things you need day to day to run your
household. One stop to buy a wide variety of things. Open late, as
much as 24/7. How is that not a concept?

1) The mom & pop store of the 1940s wasn't much bigger than the
convenience
store of today. Perhaps 3000-4000 square feet. You still find IGA and
Red &
White stores that size in small towns, but there's no way they can carry
the
variety of large supermarket chains. The newer, larger stores actually
offered something worthwhile to differentiate themselves. A Wal Mart
store
does not, unless there wano modern supermarket in the area before they
arrived.

Wal-Mart is blamed for the demise of the 'little stores on Main Street'.

Is many small towns, they WERE the demise of smaller stores. In large
markets, supermarkets did them in, unless they offered something special.
Many still do.

I grew up in a time and place when the only shopping was the little
stores on Main Street. The predominant characteristics of shopping that
way were (1) limited choices, (2) high prices, (3) no returns (You have
a problem, see the manufacturer.) The discounters that came before
WalMart killed off main street.


2) For a number of reasons, including but not limited to the acceptance
of
immigrant cultures, and increased overseas travel, the American consumer
expects to see a huge assortment of foods which used to be considered
ethnic
specialties.

The concept was invented first, and people liked it. Thus they got more
of it.

Of course! But Wal Mart makes virtually no contribution, unless you think
the presence of salsa and chips on their shelves has great meaning to your
average Hispanic customer.

When a new supermarket chain builds new stores in a city where they
haven't been before, is that a contribution? Do you have to make a
contribution to compete?

If you really think about it, Wal Mart serves NO special function as a
grocery supplier, unless you're still under their advertising spell and
you
think your groceries cost less there. They have no more leverage, and
often
less than the 20 largest grocery chains & wholesalers.

Then they're not a major competitor. What are you worried about?

I don't worry! :-) I'm simply saying that it's amazing how they suck people
in for absolutely no benefit whatsoever, at least in the grocery sector.

You sound worried.