Retail

1 Feb 2003

Small Businesses Pay Their Employees. Wal-Mart Doesn’t.

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

In December, an Oregon jury found Wal-Mart guilty of forcing employees in eighteen stores to work extra hours without pay. A separate jury will determine damages in the class-action lawsuit. Employees testified that store managers used a variety of tactics to extract unpaid labor, including requiring employees to work after they had punched out for lunch, locking the doors at night to prevent off-the-clock employees from leaving until certain tasks were complete, and manipulating employee timecards. … Read More

1 Feb 2003

Wyoming Town Latest to Open a Community-Owned Store

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

The town of Powell, Wyoming, is one of a growing number of places where residents are opening community-owned department stores. More than 800 shares of stock in the Powell Mercantile, priced at $500 each, were purchased by approximately 500 local investors. The 10,000-square-foot store, which sells mostly mid-range clothing and shoes, opened in July and has turned a profit ever since. … Read More

1 Feb 2003

Charleston Merchants Join Forces to Promote Local Stores

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

A dozen independent businesses in Charleston, West Virginia, have banded together to promote one another and the idea of supporting locally owned businesses. In November, the group began running print, television, and radio advertisements. The print ads read, "Supporting your locally owned stores keeps your dollars in our community. … Read More

1 Feb 2003

Local Stores Create Triple the Economic Activity of Chains

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

When you spend $100 at the chain Borders Books & Music, your purchase creates only $13 worth of local economic activity. That same $100 spent at locally owned book or record store generates $45, or more than three times as much local economic activity. That’s the conclusion of a new study conducted by Civic Economics and published by Livable City in Austin, Texas. … Read More

1 Feb 2003

Supermarket Concentration Harms Farmers and Consumers

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

Supermarket chains in the northeast are using their market power to reap record profits on milk at the expense of both dairy farmers and consumers, according to a new report. The findings are fueling legislative efforts in several New England states to rein in the power of grocery chains. One proposal in Maine would tax big box retailers to support dairy farms.… Read More

1 Feb 2003

Big Box Stores Drain City Revenue, Study Finds

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

Big box retail, shopping centers, and fast-food restaurants cost taxpayers more than they produce in revenue, according to a fiscal impact analysis in Barnstable, Massachusetts. The study, conducted by Tischler & Associates, compares the tax revenue generated by different kinds of residential and commercial development with the actual cost of providing public services for each land use. Barnstable is a community of 48,000 people on Cape Cod.… Read More

1 Feb 2003

German High Court Convicts Wal-Mart of Predatory Pricing

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

Germany’s highest court has ruled that Wal-Mart’s below-cost pricing strategy undermines competition and violates the country’s antitrust laws. Two years ago, the federal Cartel Office accused Wal-Mart and two other large supermarket chains of selling goods below cost and ordered the companies to raise their prices. The items in question included about a dozen staple products like milk, butter, and vegetable oil.… Read More

1 Feb 2003

Wal-Mart’s Purchase of Puerto Rico Chain Challenged

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

Puerto Rico’s Department of Justice has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to block Wal-Mart’s acquisition of the island’s largest grocery store chain, Supermercados Amigo Inc. The outcome of the case could affect the ability of states to review and challenge mergers. Wal-Mart already operates 19 outlets in Puerto Rico, including eight Sam’s Club stores and one supercenter. … Read More

1 Feb 2003

Cape Cod Coalition Promotes Local Ownership

by Stacy Mitchell | Date: 1 Feb 2003 | posted in: Retail | 0

"Now you know who really has your interests at heart," reads a recent advertisement in the Cape Cod Times that explains that a locally owned business returns a much larger share of its revenue to the local economy compared to an absentee-owned chain. The ad is part of a series of ads published in Cape Cod newspapers last fall by a new grassroots organization called the Smart Planning and Growth Coalition (SPGC).… Read More