Shopping Around

I love Costco, but as a senior citizen I have to wonder what type of message the wholesale club is sending to the 60-plus crowd.

Why do Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand Mature Multi-Vitamins come in 400-tablet bottles, while regular daily multi-vitamins are packed 500 to the bottle?

Does Costco think we seniors aren’t going to live long enough to finish off a 500-count bottle? Or is this a subtle ploy to keep us active and get us out of the house more often to replenish our stock?

Either way, I don’t like it. Nor do I like the fact that the senior formula costs more per pill.


It’s getting harder and harder to hate the company people love to hate. I’m referring, of course, to Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retail company by a factor of, oh, five times its closest American competitor, Kroger (for the record, Wal-Mart annual sales exceed $405 billion).

But enough dumping on a company just because it is B-I-G. Wal-Mart keeps doing warm and fuzzy stuff, trying to cuddle up its image. The latest soft-sell idea is a plan to make its food offerings more healthy by reducing their fat, sugar and salt contents. Wal-Mart will transition the program for its private label products over five-years while encouraging brand name suppliers to follow its lead. When you have as big an order-writing pencil as Wal-Mart, that usually guarantees attention if not compliance (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/20/business/20walmart.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=sam%20kass&st=cse).

Wal-Mart’s also pushing for positive traction in efforts to penetrate cities like New York, citing what it calls “food deserts” as a reason urban areas should allow the non-union company to open stores. It’s true—too many inner cities lack large-scale supermarkets, requiring shoppers to either travel out of their neighborhoods or pay higher prices at bodegas, convenience stores or superettes.

Of course, one argument against Wal-Mart is once its tentacles latch onto a location they reach out to squeeze the lifeblood out of nearby stores, and not just grocers (which are mostly unionized).

Yes, and no. If you’ve ever visited a Wal-Mart you might notice there are lots of stores operating in its shadow. Retailers tend to flock around an anchor that attracts shoppers, and Wal-Mart sure brings ‘em in. Those stores that thrive in Wal-Mart’s back yard generally offer lower priced goods (like dollar stores), or higher priced, specialty products (such as found in electronics stores). Or they offer great service. Or better apparel. Or provide a service, such as dry cleaning. Retailers that try to compete on price tend to go out of business. As do the ones that try to be what Wal-Mart is, only smaller. Wal-Mart also is the undertaker for any retailer who has been lax in being efficient.

Speaking of efficiency, here’s another warm & fuzzy Wal-Mart initiative—a $2 million grant from The Walmart Foundation to help 16 regional food banks save money on energy bills. Lower utility bills translate into more dollars to buy food for the needy. The company estimates that simple, low-cost energy upgrades could save the food banks more than $625,000 a year, enough to buy more than 390,000 pounds of food for 300,000 meals (http://www.greenretaildecisions.com/news/2011/01/20/walmart-foundation-gives-2-million-to-help-food-banks-go-green).

Wal-Mart also financially supports organic farmers, and regular farmers. Since it’s the largest food retailer in the country, it’s not all altruism. Wal-Mart has a selfish interest in making sure it has sufficient product to sell.

But even with all the good the company does, not everyone will shop its stores. They just don’t “feel” right. It’s hard, however, to turn one’s back on the prices. As I reported 10 days ago, national brand products cost less at Wal-Mart (http://nosocksneededanymore.blogspot.com/2011/01/shopping-right.html). When I stopped by today, a two-liter bottle of Coca-Cola, already the lowest price in the area at $1.64, had an everyday “rollback” price of $1.30. Bananas were selling at 53 cents a pound, compared to 79 cents at A&P, 69 cents at Stop & Shop and ShopRite.

It’s hard to pass up those savings.