So I have never really been a fan of Wal*Mart in the first place. We all know about their unfair labor practices and that all their stuff is made in India and Indonesia and some other third world counties where the workers are paid pennies per hour. But you can always count a pretty good freak show the minute you get out of your car and into the Wal*Mart parking lot.
Around here (Hudson County, NJ) there really is no need to ever set foot into Wal*Mart cause there are so many others of these huge “box” stores, not to mention, enough specialty boutique stores to never even need a “box” store to begin with. And as far where to purchase quick sewing supplies, I tended to head to the Rag Shop. I didn’t love the Rag Shop, but it did it’s job when I was in need of straight pins or last minute black satin to finish up an order that had to go out. I never thought about having to check out the Wal*Mart in Seacaucus before…That is… Until all the Rag Shops shut their doors.
Well, I had been putting off buying straight pins for a week or so and we were down to just about none at the studio and we were all sick of using the small metal head pins, cause they just hurt your fingers. So I ventured off to Wal*Mart to pick some up and I figured I would browse through their Simplicity Sewing Pattern Section while I was there. As I am heading to the sewing section, I am seeing the space is just about completely empty. They have packed up all the sewing supplies and pattern display cases to leave an almost empty space where they used to be. I spy a huge garbage pail, full to the brim with Simplicty Sewing Patterns and breathe a sigh of relief thinking, ooooh they are probably going to be on sale and I can browse through and buy a bunch to stock up on new sewing patterns… Nope, not the case. When I asked the sales woman if I could look through she said no, they were all going in the trash.
Well that just didn’t seem right so I kept asking her to make sure I was understannding correctly and she directed me to her manager that was packing nearby. He confirmed that yes, they were indeed going in the trash and I could not look through them, purchase them or take any…
WOW! Wal*Mart would rather dump a bunch of useful, perfectly good sewing patterns in a landfill somewhere, than sell them to a customer…. So that is why I NEVER have to set foot in a Wal*Mart again.