Wal-Mart: Small Towns
Wal-Mart’s Effect on Small Towns

Fast Facts About Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Has 4,188 stores Worldwide
Wal-Mart Employs 1.5 million people in the world
Wal-Mart Makes approximately  250 billion dollars every year
$ 9.98- The average hourly wage a Wal-Mart worker makes

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When Wal-Mart comes to town, many local “mom and pop” stores go out of business because Wal-Mart’s power.
Bonnie Neisius a UPS store owner in Las Vegas, Nevada saw less traffic coming by her store because a Wal-Mart opened down the street from her, and the stores that surrounded her building slowly closed. She said her business was down 45% 

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In Vermont the National Trust for Historic Preservation put Vermont on the endangered list because Wal-Mart was trying to build a superstore in the state.
Iowa- Since 1983 when the first Wal-Mart opened in Iowa, towns of 5,000 people or less have seen local businesses surrender to Wal-Mart’s business.  
It also affects the neighboring town business that don’t have a Wal-Mart. Consumers will come to the town with a Wal-Mart and neglect local businesses in their town.  
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Kenneth Stone of Iowa State University did a studied that showed that only one year after Wal-Mart came to a town, the neighboring town’s (who did not have a Wal-Mart) revenue was down 14% than the year before.  
Over 7,000 stores closed in Iowa in towns that had 5,000 people or less from 1983-1993.  Wal-Mart’s kept popping up.  
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Nowata, Oklahoma. In 1982, Wal-Mart opened a store on the outskirts of Nowata, a town of 4,000 people. Half of the small businesses in downtown Nowata shut down. Then in 1994, Wal-Mart abruptly closed this store, as well as another in a nearby town, and opened up a super center in Bartlesville, which is 30 miles away, leaving Nowata very poor.

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When Wal-Mart comes to town, it can be a good thing.
Many small towns don’t have the things that Wal-Mart brings
Example: In St. Albans, VT you can’t buy bed sheets and with Wal-Mart you can.
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Others say that small towns stores have been dying way back in the 1950s- before Wal-Mart was even around
People are moving to the suburbs 
Highways are cost friendly 
Technology is driving these “Mom and Pop” stores out of business rather than Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart services small towns better than Mom and Pop stores.  
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In cases such as natural disasters, Wal-Mart has come through big time
Katrina/Rita hurricanes 
Wal-Mart was better prepared than FEMA
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Before Katrina, Wal-Mart gathered up good  from over 100 of it’s stores in Louisiana, and sent trucks from small towns to New Orleans
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Recently Wal-Mart has taken steps to encourage small towns business growth
They plan to give small businesses financial grants as well as pay for radio advertisements.  
They plan to give over $500,000 to small town chambers of Commerce in order to keep small businesses open.
The plan includes everything from hardware stores to bakeries
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Every time a Wal-Mart comes to town, the town’s tax revenue increases 
This generally results in a nicer town because of the excess of money. 
Wal-Mart paid over 50 million dollars in state taxes and 13  million dollars for its 22 stores in Maine. 

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Wal-Mart also provides jobs for 1.5 million people worldwide  
Wal-Mart provides a lot of jobs which are  needed in small towns.  

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Wal-Mart also attracts other businesses to the area that they are located in. 
Many other “big box” retailers may put their stores near Wal-Mart because it is a great business opportunity for them.   
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In conclusion, Wal-Mart has many positives as well as negatives that it brings to the table in small towns.  
Whether having a Wal-Mart in a small town is a good thing or not it is up to the individual, but here are the facts.  Take them how you wish.