books 27 Feb 2007 01:31 pm
One shopper’s Walmart Experiment…
a fellow kindred spirit began her own experiment with a boycot of Walmart and thankfully kept good records! She shared them today:
The figures are in.
I quit shopping at Walmart last August 31st as a protest against several of their policies.
BUT I figured not shopping at Walmart our budget would take a hit. It has proven opposite. It has helped the budget AND I my pantry is full, my freezer is full, PLUS it is so much less stressful to shop the local grocery store or smaller, less busy discount and hardware stores.
In a side by side compaison of Sept. - Dec. 2005 to Sept. - Dec. 2006 I spent $263.14 LESS NOT shopping at Walmart. In 2005 I shopped almost exclusively at Walmart for colthing, groceries & household needs. The 2006 figure even included the extra feed I needed for the extra livestock we now own.
I started not shopping at Walmart in protest. I will continue as it has proven beneficial.
Expenditures for clothing, household, animal feed & groceries
Sept. - Dec. 2005 = 3474.27
Sept. - Dec. 2006 = 3211.13
Savings = 263.14
Rock On Girl! And thanks for letting me share this with everyone, in hopes of encouraging others that shopping at a store we hate doesn’t have to hurt our budgets!
Also, a book recommendation was passed on. Big Box Swindle. I’m sure I’ll have more to say about it soon…..bbwwwwwwhhaaahaaaaahaaa!
on 27 Feb 2007 at 5:00 pm 1.Dr. Hibiscus said …
whoa - that’s pretty darned cool! I’m actually pretty shocked. Being a scientist I have to wonder about the numbers. Is it really a fair comparison to just compare what was spent last year vs. this year? Maybe she’s gotten more conservative in her spending, or there were a couple of big purchases last year that didn’t happen this year…
I’ve been thinking about doing some comparison shopping myself. Put together a typical grocery list and go to (1) Wally World, (2) Kroger, and (3) Food City and see how much my typical list would cost at each place. I expect that Wally World will come out the cheapest, but I wonder HOW MUCH cheaper? It would be worth it to me spiritually to shop elsewhere if the cost difference wasn’t huge.
I’ll be interested in your review of Big Box Swindle.
on 28 Feb 2007 at 12:01 am 2.Cheryl in SD said …
I am shopping somewhat differently. When I shopped at W/M I just got what we needed, rarely if ever stocked up or got extras. Since switching I now get what I need (the same) and I shop the sales. Not only are we eating just about the same if not better BUT we are also building a pantry. It is now mostly full and the freezer is completely full (I have been informed that I need to quit buying things that need frozen!) I have gotten more product for less money. What I don’t have is lots of little stuff we don’t need. I have found I don’t impluse buy as much.
Joyfully,
Cheryl
on 28 Feb 2007 at 1:37 pm 3.Tami said …
Found your site by random google look up trying to find information on how to turn my alpaca poop in to fertilizer. lol
Anyway I love your paragraph discription on the top right handside of your site. I am someone whom never stays on the same path in life and am continually taking the scary unknown path through out my life and am absolutely having the adventure of a lifetime.
Have a Great Week.
P.S. I hate Walmart.
on 28 Feb 2007 at 1:43 pm 4.Tia said …
Welcome Tami!!! Alpacas are one of my DREAMS :-). I’d love to have a fiber farm some day!
on 01 Mar 2007 at 8:43 am 5.gina said …
Wow! That’s awesome Tia! That includes your house? Our church is talking about having some Dave Ramsey sessions in the future. I’ll have to tell them your success story!
on 01 Mar 2007 at 8:57 am 6.Tia said …
Gina, no, it is all our debt other than the mortgage. It was credit cards, personal loans, and medical. The house comes later. If you have a chance to take his FPU class, TAKE IT!! It will be wonderful!
on 01 Mar 2007 at 8:43 pm 7.Nickey said …
I haven’t been into Wal-Mart since before Christmas. I haven’t kept a close account of numbers but I think I am probably spending less as well, as we are eating more whole foods and not stocking up on junk food and frozen dinners.
(We also went to an Alpaca show last weekend and my husband who has always said he did not want animals, now tells me that it would be fun to get a few and see if we like them enough to make a business of it. Of course that will have to wait until we get some land.)