Superstores

I don't want to like superstores, they push out the little guy. But they are just so convenient! Sadly, due to those stores there are a sad lack of quality stores around. So we all end up buying more in the long term. But we have become a 'throw-away' society so it would seem these superstores fit our schedules, budgets, and lifestyles. The one area where I think superstores fail terribly is shoes. There are no more shoe shops in downtown areas of small towns like their used to be. I think a quality shoe is very important even though it is expensive. Even name brand like Keens that are located at supposedly 'specialty' shoes for active people are becoming factory like and having more and more flaws. The good thing about REI though; they seem to take back something if you aren't satisfied. But this is something that superstores are often willing to do as well.

 

I do like superstores. I like having a wide variety of items available for a low price. I like being able to buy school supplies, hardware, food and furniture all in the same place.
Small mom and pop stores might be cute, but they have higher prices and spending more money doesn't help my family at all.

 

You know, I can't say I really shop at superstores exactly.
I have a little bread shop I go to which sells "day old" bread for a $1 a loaf -- I just toss that in the freezer.
For much of my basic grocery needs, I shop at a place that is basically a subsidiary of a superstore, but sells the overstock/clearance products.
Go to a farm for my fruits and veggies.

Outside of that, usually go to Costco for meats or bulk products.

 

Back when they first started opening up in my area, they were kind of fun to go to, but now they are pretty much the norm these days and their drawbacks are becoming more apparent. Even Dollar General is now opening up larger stores with full grocery sections, it's getting ridiculous. Part of the problem is that many of these stores, while getting bigger, are also raising their prices. Dollar General certainly has, it's not even worth going there to save a few dollars anymore because their stuff is all expensive now, particularly brand name products.

The other reason I don't care for the big supercenter stores is because they are a pain in the butt when you just need to run in and get one or two things, you will almost always get stuck in some long line or behind a person with a buggy filled to the top. I would go into Walmart for something like a tube of superglue or some tape, then wind up standing in line for 30 minutes waiting to get checked out.

I've actually gotten to the point where I've started going back to the smaller stores like the old K-Mart near me that hardly anyone shops at, or the practically dead JC Penney in an old plaza by my house. It's nice having the whole store to yourself, and nobody getting in your way, or tying up the checkout lines.

If I absolutely need a bunch of stuff at the supercenter stores like WalMart, I will instead go really late at night, like 11:30-12am just to avoid all the crowds.

 

I do NOT like shopping at Walmart. I can't stand the customer service, the lack of organization within the stores, and the atmosphere of them. However, I do love Target. That is a big store I shop at all the time. I do not have a SuperK or Kmart in my area. Sometimes, I will shop at Sam's Club, but it is not very often.

 

I hate shopping at big superstores!! I used to love them when they first started opening many years ago. I think basically because they were new and something we had never had really. Over the years they began to really go downhill. There is usually no one around to help you if you have a question and the lines are always soooo long! I do know they are less expensive on most of their items but in the long run it is just not worth the aggravation. I shop at a smaller grocery store where I can get special attention if I do have a question. They even take me right to the product I am looking for! So nice. I am a couponer so even though their prices my be higher than the big superstore, I save anyway. My shopping experience is a good one and sometimes that's what matters.

 

I like superstores to browse in and they carry a good selection to choose from. I usually check online first to see if they stock what I am looking for and then go in and look. I prefer to have choice and a good price. Customer service does matter, but as it is a quick transaction, I don't worry too much if it bad. As long as the lines are too long, I am happy finding what I need at the best price.

 

Lots of cheap made in china items in the Superstores. That's the appeal for the average shopper, bargins. The big brand stores are killing the mom and pops shops and buy mass inventory from china that hurts the economy even more so.

 

This thread got me thinking, I wonder how kids these days are going to react to smaller stores, if that becomes the trend going forward. For me and many people my age, the big stores of our youth pale in comparison to the larger flashier stores around today. A regular sized K-Mart used to seem big to me as a kid, I couldn't even fathom walking into a Sam's Club when I was that age - it would have felt like entering into an airport or something like that.

I've read recently that Wal-Mart, in reaction to it's slowing sales, has started to abandon it's strategy of building mega stores, and began test marketing smaller more paired down stores in certain locations. There are clearly some advantages to going smaller too - it gives them far more options where they can open up, rather than having to open on the outskirts of cities and townships where there is more open rural land because they are too big and need too much space. This means less driving for customers to get to them too.

Grocery stores seem to be going in two directions, some are expanding and getting even bigger, while on the other hand, Trader Joe's are popping up all over the place too with a much smaller footprint but are still doing a ton of business.

 

When shopping for cat food and litter for a large amount of cats it is almost mandatory to shop the superstores. Sometimes I can get a good deal on food at the feed store and other times I can get a good deal on litter at Petsmart, but mostly I buy cat food and litter from Walmart. I intend to rejoin Costco at some point but it is probably 40 miles away and I have no car and don't really feel right asking my friend to take me that far on a regular basis. I live in a rural area though and the Walmart really isn't that busy. Also I am very disciplined and if I go there for cat food and litter that's what I leave with, I don't buy piles of other stuff.