#Walmart vs #CostCo - Who is really hurting the Poor All across Spacebook and the internet, article after article, Walmart is portrayed as evil rich people who profit by paying low wages while Costco is the lover of the poor who pay high wages aimed at lifting them into success.... but is that really the case? Walmarts business model is to provide products to as many people as possible for the lowest cost as possible. They are very strict on prices from their vendors and the idea of raising prices by even a $.01 by Sarah Lee on bread is countered with threats of pulling product from their shelves. If you have ever dealt with Walmart, you know this very well and is very true. Walm dictates lower prices and refuses to budge. Vendors cow-tow to their requests and we the consumer have lower prices because of it. Walm wants prices the poor can afford. Walmarts do not require membership fees, they accept food-stamps and build stores in statistically poor neighborhoods in attempt to provide jobs and food to areas that normally only have plight and are considered food desserts by Michelle Obama. The overall theme - if we build it affordable for the poor, the rich can also afford it. It is a win win for all classes. Statistically, Walmart Costcos business model is completely different. Costco targets consumers looking to buy in bulk, something the poor normally cannot afford. Costco requires at minimum a $55 membership before walking in the door. Again, something that is devastating to the poor living on a small fixed budget. Costco targets predominately middle to upper income class neighborhoods for store locations. Costco did not accept food-stamps until public pressure forced them to in 09. Statistically, Costco causes prices to rise once a new location is built. The overall theme of Costco is to provide products to everyone but the poor. The difference between the two is night and day. One is for the rich and the other is for the poor. Why then, is Walmart declared evil while CostCo is seen as awesomeness? One word: Unions. Walmart is a proud non-union shop in order to keep costs low. CostCo is a union shop and thus prices trend higher. Because Walmart is outspoken on unionization of their work force, unions not only pay for PR campaigns to smear Walmart as evil, but pay non-union bystanders to protest and picket outside of Walmarts.. Now why would unions care that much about Walmart? You guessed it, the benjamins. If walm is unionized those rich white old men running those unions see a flux of new dues that will line their millionaire pockets, regardless if it causes prices to increase on the poor and locations in poor neighborhoods to close causing devastating job loss. Maybe, instead of pressuring Walm to be like Costco and serve the upper classes and white demographics, we should pressure Costco to be more like Walm and build a business model to serve the poor, minorities and rural areas. Just something to ponder....
Posted on: Fri, 06 Jun 2014 21:32:37 +0000