Small businesses should not fear the approach of a Wal-Mart Supercenter store in Princeton as a death knell for their establishments.
Wal-Mart Senior Manager of Public Affairs Jason Wetzel told an afternoon crowd attending a Small Business Town Hall Meeting in Princeton Thursday that the company was not out to crush its smaller competitors.
“It’s better for us when an entire community’s local economy is thriving,” Wetzel said. “We don’t want to be the only game in town.”
Wetzel’s comments came at the end of a full-day of presentations geared toward small business owners in the town hall meeting, organized by the Caldwell-Lyon Partnership in cooperation with area Chambers of Commerce.
The Princeton Supercenter, tentatively planned to open in early 2009, will occupy about 176,079 square feet, employ between 325 and 350 workers and feature about 142,000 items, he said.
The current store, in comparison, takes up approximately 77,873 square feet, employs 143 and offers about 120,000 items, he said.
When it opens, though, its main competition will be other large retailers — not the city’s smaller businesses, he said.
“Small businesses have learned to succeed and thrive with folks like you,” he said. “Those small businesses have usually already carved out a niche and have their loyal customers, whoever they may be.”
The identity shoppers associate with Wal-Mart, Wetzel said, is low prices.
For in-depth, individual service, customers should visit the smaller retailers they trust, he said, quoting Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton’s adage: those looking only to buy a can of paint can come to Wal-Mart; for advice on types and techniques for painting, they can visit their local hardware store.
The same philosophy can apply in the grocery aisle. To buy common items, shoppers can come to Wal-Mart. For special cuts of meat, they can visit the butcher or deli they have come to trust.
The company also does what it can to be a community partner, he added.
“It’s always best to support where you are,” he said. “It’s good for everybody.”
The company has donated $168,864 to local and area organizations since 2001, he said, but added that its efforts are not always widely publicized.
“You will not often see with Wal-Mart what some other large companies do,” he said. “We think it’s much more worthwhile to put (the money) right back in the community.”
A Wal-Mart also serves as a litmus test of sorts for other companies interested in coming to the area, he said.
“We do spur business growth in surrounding areas,” he said. “It’s not like our store and the four walls are where the jobs stop.”
Following Wetzel’s presentation, local Chamber President Brad Harralson moderated a question-and-answer session between the audience and the Wal-Mart spokesperson.
Though most of the questions dealt with the company’s impact on small businesses, the session also touched on plans for the current Wal-Mart building once the company moves further out U.S. 62.
Wal-Mart only leases the building, Wetzel said, so its fate will ultimately lie with the property owner.
The buildings usually do not stay vacant for long, though, he said, noting that in his tenure, he has seen churches, discount stores, farm stores, call centers and other organizations utilize the large, empty structures.
“They get used up,” he said.
