McSpotlight on the Retail Industry

When a huge retailer comes to a small town, local stores close down. In Gig Harbor USA, the vast majority of citizens are adamantly opposed to the coming of Wal-Mart. Their petition drive includes over 11,000 signatures from people in town and the surrounding areas. The population of Gig Harbor itself is just over 4,000. Even the local weekly newspaper has taken a firm stance against Wal-Mart coming to their town.

None of this seems to mean much to Wal-Mart. The corporate giant has pegged the Gig Harbor area as ripe for one of its stores (most certainly hoping to draw many customers from nearby Tacoma).

And so the people of Gig Harbor are left with two choices: to acquiesce, capitulate, give in, and allow Wal-Mart to rumble in with their 148,000-square foot complex and do what it will to the Local economy and community fabric... or to go into battle against the biggest, richest, most powerful retailer in the world. They made their choice. They will fight them tooth and nail. They are just one of many local communities fighting the big retailers, such as; Wal-Mart, K'Mart, Target, Tesco, Sainsbury's etc.

Resistance on-line

http://www.harbornet.com/pna/ - The Battle of Gig Harbor 'Us against the Wal'
http://www.hookup.net/~claytons/tcsaga.html - The Saga of Town & Country, Missouri
http://www.connix.com/~fndssayb/ - Friends of Saybrook
http://www.hookup.net/~claytons/walmart.html - Eight ways to beat Wal Mart