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More than 200 residents of Hood River, Oregon, linked arms to form a giant circle around their downtown one Friday afternoon in late May. Organized by the Hood River Citizens for Responsible Growth (CRG), the "Arms Around Our Town" event was designed to demonstrate community support for locally owned businesses, and to illustrate just how large a proposed Wal-Mart supercenter would be and how many local stores would be threatened.… Read More
Strong protest from dozens of Asian small business owners has led Wal-Mart to drop plans for a giant supercenter in west Denver. Wal-Mart had been working with the Denver Urban Renewal Authority (DURA) to condemn and bulldoze Alameda Square, a shopping center housing some 25 Vietnamese, Cambodian, Laotian and Chinese businesses, including the city’s largest Asian grocery store. This spring, DURA declared the center "blighted," the first step in evicting the businesses and clearing the way for Wal-Mart.… Read More
Denver’s Asian stores are not alone in facing condemnation for a national chain. In a growing number of court cases around the country, small business owners are challenging attempts by local and state governments to seize their property for chain store development. Traditionally, eminent domain—the power of government to take private property for public use, provided that the owner receive market value—has been used for schools, roads, and other public infrastructure. … Read More
Opponents of a massive Wal-Mart supercenter approved by the New Orleans City Council in April are fighting the so-called "done deal" on several fronts. A coalition of organizations has filed two lawsuits challenging the decision. The plaintiffs include Smart Growth for Louisiana, the Coliseum Square Association, the Louisiana Landmarks Society, the Historic Magazine Row Association, and the Urban Conservancy. … Read More
Leading publishers will be involved in determining which books are carried at Borders Books stores under a new "category management" plan being phased in this year. Under the plan, Borders is assigning each of 250 book categories—ranging from thrillers to romance novels—to one of the top publishers in that category. Borders will provide this "category captain" with detailed sales data for all titles in the category, including those of competitors. … Read More
In late May, Mexico’s antitrust agency, the Federal Competition Commission, opened an investigation into Wal-Mart for "monopolistic practices." The action was prompted by charges that Wal-Mart has abused its market power by pressuring suppliers to sell goods below cost or at prices substantially lower than those available to other retailers (even after accounting for reasonable volume discounts).… Read More
A federal judge has dismissed all charges in the antitrust case brought by three independent video rental businesses against Blockbuster Video and several major Hollywood studios. The defendants were charged with price discrimination and conspiracy to prevent independent stores from gaining access to the same revenue-sharing deals available to Blockbuster.… Read More
Local newspapers suffer a double blow when giant chains like Home Depot or Wal-Mart come to town. Not only do these companies rarely advertise in local newspapers, but they usually force dozens of independent retailers to close, eliminating significant sources of newspaper ad revenue. In a recent article in Editor & Publisher, Mark Fitzgerald describes the deadly impact that the rise of corporate chains and decline of locally owned businesses has had on local newspapers.… Read More
Many city officials welcome large chain retailers for the tax revenue that create. Rarely do they consider the other side of the balance sheet: the tax losses that occur when chains displace local stores and the added costs of providing roads, sewers, police, fire, and other public services to the sprawling new development.
Added police costs are proving especially difficult for many communities that once welcomed big box stores. Take Port Richey, Florida, for example. … Read More
