The beginning of this Foolishness...Or Is It? is not about Wal-Mart but it is about the precursor to Wal-Mart the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company (A&P)...
- A federal judge in Woodrow Wilson's day deemed A&P a "monopolist".
- A prosecutor in Franklin Roosevelt's administration called A&P a "giant blood sucker".
- Another federal judge, during Harry Truman's presidency, convicted A&P of violating antitrust law.
- The federal government investigated A&P almost continuously for a quarter of a century.
- More than half the states tried to tax A&P out of business.
Yes, for its marketing strategy of Selling Groceries Cheaply, A&P has paid a very heavy price.
Today, long after its birth near the docks of lower Manhattan, the Great A&P is reaching the end. It has filed for Chapter 11 and is seeking a buyer but no one is stepping up to buy it.
A&P once was once the most controversial company in the country and the center of a struggle over the very nature of American Capitalism.
Since you are reading this on a Word Processor, rewrite the above sentence and Word Process it into... “Wal-Mart is the most controversial company in the country and is the center of a struggle over the very nature of American Capitalism”.
The Smartfella enjoys Wal-Mart. He enjoys walking around a Wal-Mart amongst all the people who are glad that Wal-Mart is there for them to save money. They need to Buy for Less because they don’t make a lot of money while the people who are engaged in their never ending attack on Wal-Mart enjoy walking around those other more expensive stores and Buying for More.
All of you Wal-Mart Haters now have reason to cheer because A&P is about done for...
- The good news for you is Wal-Mart is very likely going to follow A&P into bankruptcy some day.
- The bad news for you is A&P started in 1849.
- The other bad news for you is Wal-Mart started in 1962.
- The other other bad news is Wal-Mart has only been around 51 years and, based on the A&P Longevity Model, it will be another 113 years before y’all will be able to say this about Wal-Mart, “See, I told you it was going to go out of business”.
Would I kid u?
Smartfella
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