Johnny Au
Senior Member
That Wal-Mart store would cannibalize sales from the Wal-Mart Supercentre in Dufferin Mall as well.
I'm just curious to see if you realise that as things stand we as a society can easily reject certain 'business models' without owing any explanations to anyone, so long as we perceive it's in the community's best interest.
Saying that we can't exclude Walmart because it's just a business and has certain rights has no basis in our already tightly regulated market.
If the people in Kensington Market see Walmart or Loblaws as unethical monopolistic competition that does not advance their vision of a better place, they are well within their right to reject them.
That Wal-Mart store would cannibalize sales from the Wal-Mart Supercentre in Dufferin Mall as well.
Both I'd think. Though Honest Eds isn't that far from Dufferin Mall; it may well have long since lost many of the shoppers who would switch. It's only a 25 minute walk from Honest Eds to Dufferin Mall. It's still a 15 minute walk from Honest Eds to this location on Bathurst just north of Bloor.More likely it would cannibalize from Honest Eds.
I think I'm starting to understand the anti-walmart take in this neighbourhood. Kensington "people" are not against the actual walmart store, they're against the type of people who shop at this store. It once was ok for neighbourhood meetings to whisper about the effects of black people on property values. Today that prejudice seems to have been transformed into a fear of the lower middle class--struggling working-class people who buy disgusting things like un-organic Kraft peanut butter and dare to shop in their sweatpants.
I think I'm starting to understand the anti-walmart take in this neighbourhood. Kensington "people" are not against the actual walmart store, they're against the type of people who shop at this store. It once was ok for neighbourhood meetings to whisper about the effects of black people on property values. Today that prejudice seems to have been transformed into a fear of the lower middle class--struggling working-class people who buy disgusting things like un-organic Kraft peanut butter and dare to shop in their sweatpants.
Do I really have to dig that far on this thread to find the kind of grossed out disdain for these "people" and their suburban habits that everyone professes to tolerate? How favourable would neighbours greet Honest Ed's if it were newly built today?
Ok, who's vision of a "better place"? What does that vision entail? Hipsters buying craft beer and $40 blocks of cheese? As anywhere else, we seem to have sympathy in this city for the poor, envy for the rich and utter contempt for the people who make up the working poor, those disgusting, junk-food eating society-ending walmart shoppers. Do I really have to dig that far on this thread to find the kind of grossed out disdain for these "people" and their suburban habits that everyone professes to tolerate? How favourable would neighbours greet Honest Ed's if it were newly built today?
That was not too hard to find... consternation, concern, what exactly does the area need and or want? The vision for this neighbourhood, you have that all mapped out? I don't mean to sound harsh, but this is exactly the kind of disdainful and presumptive pronouncements I alluded to earlier. Would Honest Ed's be built today?
Would Honest Ed's be built today?
also, what do "hipsters buying craft beer and $40 blocks of cheese" have to do with anything? that's called a straw man.
Good news!That's it, pick on the one or two odder items.
Surely, I'm not the only one who came away from Walmart scratching my head on why people buy food there. I was in one, once, and having failed to find the item I came for (on the website, but out-of-stock). Any bedsheets (what kind of store only stocks polyester sheets?), I checked out the food, for 2 or 3 things I needed to grab. I couldn't find the brands I use. I couldn't even find a basic staple like organic milk, which even small grocery stores carry.
Now, I confess that I made my first purchase in many years there the other day. A pair of child's soccer shoes. But even then, they only had a single size 13 in stock - but that was one more than the small store nearby, that only had up to 12.5. No choice on colours or styles.
My previous trip to a Walmart was about 4 years previous. A large one, in a major mall (Scarborough Town Centre). I was shocked how shabby it was. The shelves looked like everyone had tossed stuff on the floor, and put it back on again. Hard to find anything. Cat shit wouldn't have surprised me. It would surprise me in the corner stores I frequent though.
The only reason I was in the place, was because it appeared it was the quickest way to get to the Best Buy that was allegedly in the mall. Though when I got to the Walmart doors, and realised the Best Buy was on the other side of a car park, in torrential rain, I gave up, headed for the Scarborough Skytrain, and returned to civilization. Odd place ...
If the Walmart hadn't been there chances are I could have bought the same microwave from a local retailer and my money would have stayed in the community. Sure, I would have paid like $20 more or something, but then the owner of the store may be my customer one day.
Let me open my fridge and see what's in there and around...
OK, here goes:
- Organic free-run eggs
- Organic 4% milk
- Kozlik's Canadian Mustard
- Organic almond butter
- Organic quinoa
- Almond flour
- Organic wheat berries
- Fresh basil
- Preserved Peruvian eggplants
- Zucchini
- Avocado
- Carrots
- Maple butter
- Organic Canadian Emmental cheese
- 4 Year-old Aged Cheddar
- Montreal-style Bagels (from NuBugel)
- Pumpernickel Rye
- Portobello mushrooms
- Whole rye flour
- Mayo
And my favourite cereal is Yogactive (which has nothing to do with yoga but rather with yoghurt). It is not available at Walmart in Ontario.
I tried doing my groceries at Walmart many times over the years (usually when accompanying a friend), and every single time I came out almost empty-handed. I remarkably bought these plantains and avocados once that did not mature over the course of a whole summer. I threw them away after three months!
P.S. I listed as many things as I had the patience to, didn't focus on items I'm unlikely to find at Walmart.