Well, another year and another Black Friday in the books. Me, no I didn't go shopping. I have broken free from zombie consumerism (though I did not get away completely free, I did go up to Blue Jacket Books in Xenia). However, because I currently work in the wonderful world of retail, I got to be up bright and early to greet the consumer sheep hoard.
Don't get me wrong, customers are great, especially when you depend on them to spend money so that you can have money. I like it when my family has food. Full bellies is a plus in my house. However, the problem is, to me, that (I think) people don't really think about why they are shopping. They just seem to do it as if it is an innate drive like sex. And I suppose the Black Friday shopping venture is much like sex: not everyone is interested in doing it at the same time, especially if it's very early in the morning; sometimes there is ton of work, but not everyone walks away satisfied; rarely does anyone want to cuddle afterwards.
On a positive note, in spite of many of them being up since midnight, the customers were quite pleasant this year. I mean, no one got pepper sprayed in our store, unlike at a Wal-Mart store in California. Oh well, maybe next year. Until then, have a happy and safe holiday season.
D
Showing posts with label big box retailers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label big box retailers. Show all posts
Friday, November 25, 2011
Monday, November 21, 2011
Contact A Big-Box Store Headquarters!
I just recently contacted the Wal-Mart headquarters about their disdain and indifference toward their workers by opening their stores at 10pm on Thanksgiving night. Of course they are not going to take advice from a sociology undergrad, but it is incumbent upon me to at least bring it to their attention (not that others have not already done so). And so here is my succinct message to Wal-Mart:
I just want to thank you for destroying your employees' family time this year by opening your stores at 10pm. I really think that is just superbly awesome of you. I guarantee that no member of the Walton family will be cutting short their time with their family on Thanksgiving to go do manual labor in one of their stores. But hey, anything for a buck, right?
Treat your employees right,
David Wean
I know, it's not much but it is something, and I encourage all two of you reading this to contact Wal-Mart or any other big-box store that is opening uber early and in doing so screwing their employees. These workers have families that they would love to spend time with, and it is a kick in the teeth for companies to expect their workers to cut their family time short just to sell a TV. So all I ask is that you do your part: contact at least one big-box store and let them know how you feel about them taking advantage of their employees. Maybe, just maybe, we can change how they do business, It's worth a shot.
D
I just want to thank you for destroying your employees' family time this year by opening your stores at 10pm. I really think that is just superbly awesome of you. I guarantee that no member of the Walton family will be cutting short their time with their family on Thanksgiving to go do manual labor in one of their stores. But hey, anything for a buck, right?
Treat your employees right,
David Wean
I know, it's not much but it is something, and I encourage all two of you reading this to contact Wal-Mart or any other big-box store that is opening uber early and in doing so screwing their employees. These workers have families that they would love to spend time with, and it is a kick in the teeth for companies to expect their workers to cut their family time short just to sell a TV. So all I ask is that you do your part: contact at least one big-box store and let them know how you feel about them taking advantage of their employees. Maybe, just maybe, we can change how they do business, It's worth a shot.
D
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Black Friday Retailers Pt. 1
"Ms. Nyberg is drawing the line now that major chains like Target, Macy’s, Best Buy and Kohl’s say they will open for the first time at midnight on Thanksgiving, and Wal-Mart will go even further, with a 10 p.m. Thanksgiving start for deals on some merchandise."
This is what we have come to: cutting far into Thanksgiving so that one store can beat the other to the first dollar, I guess. The saddest part of this story is that the workers who spend time with their families on Thanksgiving will have their holiday cut short, more than likely. But again, for what reason? Money doesn't magically disappear from the consumer's hand if they don't spend it by a certain time, but apparently this is lost on, at least, the Best Buy CEO:
"One retail executive sounded sad about the decision to open earlier. Brian Dunn, the chief executive of Best Buy, said that the midnight opening “became an operating imperative for us” after competitors moved their openings back. “I feel terrible,” he said."
The truth is that Best Buy and no one else needs to open up the two-hours before their competitor. People will make sure they are at your store if you have the deal they want, and if Mr. Dunn actually gave a rip about his employees, he wouldn't be opening his store at midnight. And I bet that Mr. Dunn won't be torn away from his family during this holiday season so that he can go to work to load a heavy-ass TV into someone's car at midnight; if he had to, I bet he would have a different perspective on the situation. He does NOT feel terrible. That is bullshit.
Of course, Mr. Dunn and his like will always fallback on good ol' platitudes about the market and how its invisible hand will magically guide their business to do the 'right thing.' They will say, if people didn't come out and buy our cheap Chinese made crap at midnight then we wouldn't open. And that's bullshit, too. If Wal-Mart or Best Buy cared about their employees, like they claim, they wouldn't open until later in the morning, but the sad truth is that they don't care about their employees, and they are counting on you, the consumer, to not care about their employees either. So this holiday shopping season, please don't only think about the product you are buying, but think about who it is you are buying it from. The holiday season is a difficult one for everyone, but it is especially difficult for retail workers.
D
Quotes above are from this Yahoo News article: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/thanksgiving-day-shop-meets-rejection-123025036.html
This is what we have come to: cutting far into Thanksgiving so that one store can beat the other to the first dollar, I guess. The saddest part of this story is that the workers who spend time with their families on Thanksgiving will have their holiday cut short, more than likely. But again, for what reason? Money doesn't magically disappear from the consumer's hand if they don't spend it by a certain time, but apparently this is lost on, at least, the Best Buy CEO:
"One retail executive sounded sad about the decision to open earlier. Brian Dunn, the chief executive of Best Buy, said that the midnight opening “became an operating imperative for us” after competitors moved their openings back. “I feel terrible,” he said."
The truth is that Best Buy and no one else needs to open up the two-hours before their competitor. People will make sure they are at your store if you have the deal they want, and if Mr. Dunn actually gave a rip about his employees, he wouldn't be opening his store at midnight. And I bet that Mr. Dunn won't be torn away from his family during this holiday season so that he can go to work to load a heavy-ass TV into someone's car at midnight; if he had to, I bet he would have a different perspective on the situation. He does NOT feel terrible. That is bullshit.
Of course, Mr. Dunn and his like will always fallback on good ol' platitudes about the market and how its invisible hand will magically guide their business to do the 'right thing.' They will say, if people didn't come out and buy our cheap Chinese made crap at midnight then we wouldn't open. And that's bullshit, too. If Wal-Mart or Best Buy cared about their employees, like they claim, they wouldn't open until later in the morning, but the sad truth is that they don't care about their employees, and they are counting on you, the consumer, to not care about their employees either. So this holiday shopping season, please don't only think about the product you are buying, but think about who it is you are buying it from. The holiday season is a difficult one for everyone, but it is especially difficult for retail workers.
D
Quotes above are from this Yahoo News article: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/thanksgiving-day-shop-meets-rejection-123025036.html
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Big Box Retailers Perpetuate Social Stereotypes...Maybe
The following is a short extra-credit paper I did for an anthropology class. My goal was to see if big-box retailers' in-store advertisements perpetuated social and cultural views of who should be in our (the consumer's) peer group. This wasn't a serious study by any means. The idea was to get myself and others to use their 'sociological imaginations' so that we could (hopefully) stimulate conversation. I just wanted everyone to be more aware of their surroundings and to ask why.
D
Does in-store advertising (e.g. signage and product packaging) affect our perceptions of who should be in our peer or class groups? Do they reinforce racial and gender stereotypes? These are the questions that I set out to try to answer for this extra-credit project. I know: these are really big questions with no readily available answers to them. Unfortunately, I did not have the hours to research through the relevant peer-reviewed studies (if any exist, which I’m sure they do); nor was I able to use the triangulation method of gathering data. If was to use triangulation, I would have observed, surveyed consumers, and I might have used an interview method to gain the rest of my data (this method, I feel, would have been a rich source of data). There is also another short-coming with my “study:” the sample is not random. The stores I picked were all in one particular area, located in close proximity to one-another.
All of the short-comings of my “study” aside, I think we can still draw some very basic, surface, superficial conclusions. Though it was not my intention to make any deep, concrete, or peer-review worthy conclusions in the first-place. This project is not meant so much to be concrete or prescriptive but, rather, it is meant to stimulate conversation. So while we may not be able to draw solid conclusions here, I would like to have some fun and look at my findings through the lens of Conflict Theory; with just a touch of Feminist Theory (I know it technically falls, at least partly, within the realm of Conflict Theory). Again, my primary hope for this paper is that it stimulates thought and conversation.
I took a Saturday afternoon and went to two stores: two big-box (a general retail store and a sporting goods store) retailers. What I had found was there are many similarities between the two big-box stores. In the big-box retail stores, most of the in-store signage was dominated by “white” people. In particular, areas of business and business casual clothing, white males (females for the female clothing) were portrayed the most. The same went for teenage casual clothing and women’s clothing. While other ethnicities were not excluded, “whites” were portrayed in in-store signage at a rate of 4:1 (roughly). Interestingly enough, once I reached the sporting apparel and sporting goods, “blacks” were represented at higher rates, around 1:1 or 2:1 (this is in comparison to “whites”). Another interesting observation, with sporting goods in particular, was that “whites” were portrayed as participating in activities such as: fishing, camping, hunting, and swimming. In all of these sporting categories, only “whites” were portrayed as participating in such activities. It is also worth noting that women were represented in sporting goods very poorly.
The portrayal of women was also typical, in a stereotypical way. Women were mostly represented in the following areas: apparel, fashion accessories, make-up, and housewares. Again, “whites” represented most of those being portrayed on the in-store signage and product packaging. “Black” females had higher representation within the realm of high, trendy women’s fashion, but again, they were not equally represented. However, the most diversified women’s section was with make-up. This was the only place within the store where there was roughly equal representation for many ethnicities. But women were still advertised as people who wear “feminine” colors, take care of children and house, and are sexually available at all times. This is as opposed to the men, who, appear rugged, tough, and economically successful.
On a positive note, the pharmacy area and children’s toy sections were very well diversified. In these areas the ratio of represented “whites” in comparison to other ethnicities dropped to anywhere from 1:1 to 2:1. In the toy section in particular, children were portrayed as cooperating and sharing with those of a different social, ethnic, or cultural background.
What does all of this mean? My observations have led me to this conclusion (remember, this is superficial, and at this point for fun): in-store signing represents the large ideals and stereotypes of our society. Gender, racial and class roles are still completely intact and represented inside these big-box retailers: girls are to wear pink; women are to be sexually available and take care of children and house; men are to be rugged and successful; “blacks” play basketball; and so on. While each department signage had diversity within it, “white” males were still the most represented in all categories except for make-up and women’s clothing (this is for obvious gender role reasons). Again, my observations herein are superficial, and noi concrete, viable conclusions can be drawn here. However, this has left me wondering if in-store signing does affect the perceptions of the consumer, in particular as to who that consumer is supposed to find within their class and peer group. On the surface in-store advertising does, to a degree, tell us who we should expect along with where and how.
D
Who Do We Expect?
Does in-store advertising (e.g. signage and product packaging) affect our perceptions of who should be in our peer or class groups? Do they reinforce racial and gender stereotypes? These are the questions that I set out to try to answer for this extra-credit project. I know: these are really big questions with no readily available answers to them. Unfortunately, I did not have the hours to research through the relevant peer-reviewed studies (if any exist, which I’m sure they do); nor was I able to use the triangulation method of gathering data. If was to use triangulation, I would have observed, surveyed consumers, and I might have used an interview method to gain the rest of my data (this method, I feel, would have been a rich source of data). There is also another short-coming with my “study:” the sample is not random. The stores I picked were all in one particular area, located in close proximity to one-another.
All of the short-comings of my “study” aside, I think we can still draw some very basic, surface, superficial conclusions. Though it was not my intention to make any deep, concrete, or peer-review worthy conclusions in the first-place. This project is not meant so much to be concrete or prescriptive but, rather, it is meant to stimulate conversation. So while we may not be able to draw solid conclusions here, I would like to have some fun and look at my findings through the lens of Conflict Theory; with just a touch of Feminist Theory (I know it technically falls, at least partly, within the realm of Conflict Theory). Again, my primary hope for this paper is that it stimulates thought and conversation.
I took a Saturday afternoon and went to two stores: two big-box (a general retail store and a sporting goods store) retailers. What I had found was there are many similarities between the two big-box stores. In the big-box retail stores, most of the in-store signage was dominated by “white” people. In particular, areas of business and business casual clothing, white males (females for the female clothing) were portrayed the most. The same went for teenage casual clothing and women’s clothing. While other ethnicities were not excluded, “whites” were portrayed in in-store signage at a rate of 4:1 (roughly). Interestingly enough, once I reached the sporting apparel and sporting goods, “blacks” were represented at higher rates, around 1:1 or 2:1 (this is in comparison to “whites”). Another interesting observation, with sporting goods in particular, was that “whites” were portrayed as participating in activities such as: fishing, camping, hunting, and swimming. In all of these sporting categories, only “whites” were portrayed as participating in such activities. It is also worth noting that women were represented in sporting goods very poorly.
The portrayal of women was also typical, in a stereotypical way. Women were mostly represented in the following areas: apparel, fashion accessories, make-up, and housewares. Again, “whites” represented most of those being portrayed on the in-store signage and product packaging. “Black” females had higher representation within the realm of high, trendy women’s fashion, but again, they were not equally represented. However, the most diversified women’s section was with make-up. This was the only place within the store where there was roughly equal representation for many ethnicities. But women were still advertised as people who wear “feminine” colors, take care of children and house, and are sexually available at all times. This is as opposed to the men, who, appear rugged, tough, and economically successful.
On a positive note, the pharmacy area and children’s toy sections were very well diversified. In these areas the ratio of represented “whites” in comparison to other ethnicities dropped to anywhere from 1:1 to 2:1. In the toy section in particular, children were portrayed as cooperating and sharing with those of a different social, ethnic, or cultural background.
What does all of this mean? My observations have led me to this conclusion (remember, this is superficial, and at this point for fun): in-store signing represents the large ideals and stereotypes of our society. Gender, racial and class roles are still completely intact and represented inside these big-box retailers: girls are to wear pink; women are to be sexually available and take care of children and house; men are to be rugged and successful; “blacks” play basketball; and so on. While each department signage had diversity within it, “white” males were still the most represented in all categories except for make-up and women’s clothing (this is for obvious gender role reasons). Again, my observations herein are superficial, and noi concrete, viable conclusions can be drawn here. However, this has left me wondering if in-store signing does affect the perceptions of the consumer, in particular as to who that consumer is supposed to find within their class and peer group. On the surface in-store advertising does, to a degree, tell us who we should expect along with where and how.
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