Shop at Wal-Mart
Let's face it, shopping at Wal-Mart is incredibly convenient. Most are open 24 hours a day, within 15 minutes of our own home, and we can save a dollar or two at Wal-Mart opposed to shopping at other stores. But what is it doing to our community? Is it really saving us money?
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The Job Killer
Wal-Mart store openings kill 3 local jobs for every 2 they create by reducing retail employment by an average of 2.7 percent in every county they enter.
The Community Killer
Unlike local businesses, Wal-Mart sends most of their revenues out of the community: for
every $100 spent in locally owned businesses, $68 stayed in the local economy
while chain stores only left $43 to re-circulate locally.
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Small Shop Killer
Stores near a new Wal-Mart are at increased risk of going out of business. After a
single Wal-Mart opened in Chicago in September 2006, 82 of the 306 small
businesses in the surrounding neighborhood had gone out of business by March
2008.
Stop the
Community Killer
Using your knowledge from this page, put your zip code in the box to the right and start shopping local. The easiest solution to saving Mom and Pop stores and preventing Wal-Mart and other big box stores from taking over your town: shop local. Shopping local keeps your money local, saving you (and your town) money in the long run, rather than saving a dollar or two at Wal-Mart.