Walmart dumps layaway

[cockman1701]

"Due to declining layaway sales, we have decided to phase out our layaway program."
That's what the signs say at the store I work at. I think it will just hurt them in the long run. I've also heard that now Target and Toys R Us will be starting layaway programs. I just thought I would share with everyone. I now return you to your regularly scheduled jub programing.

 

[johnflagc]

thanks for the PSA.........and btw, I fully agree with you about it hurting the business at your store in the long run.........haven't seen a sign at ours going that route yet and there seems to be a lot of people doing layaways all over despite being charged extra at some stores for doing layaways.......probably an issue of labor intensive type work and space at some places.

 

[me12121]

I never really saw the point of layaway. Do you just go and visit your item every week? lol. Why not just save up the money and buy it when you have the money, or use a credit card?

According to wikipedia (via AP), layaway has been discontinued in all stores.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Layaway

 

[Croynan]

I was not aware that layaway programs still existed.

I think given our economy and various financial situations many people have to deal with, the layaway is a superb idea.

I think it will open the "market place" to more people and might even eventually have a positive impact on the sales/wages made/given.

This could be a great benefit to single parents and or familes with several children in them.

Thanks for making this posting. Very informative.



eM.

 

[dte]

Your term 'Layaway' I think is the same as our term 'Layby'. I have never actually had anything on layby in my life but I know a lot of families use it specifically for the purchase of toys for Christmas. It saves the last minute rush and not getting the desired gifts without having to hide them in the cupboard at home with the possibility of junior finding them befoe Santa is able to deliver them.... especially some of the larger items.

Many people prefer this for Christmas purchases in particular. At other times people just put it on their credit card I guess.

Maybe your store could just have it for the Christmas period purchases.No doubt, they will lose some customers. Though from what I read in the business pages and elsewhere , Walmart is not everyone's cup of tea either. Each time they cut a cost, it usually means less service. Unfortunately some of our stores are about to use the Walmart model.

 

[me12121]

^Ah, that sounds like one good use for layaway. My family never celebrated Christmas so I never thought of that.

 

[bma1983]

I grew up on layaway. For many people and families who lived paycheck to paycheck it was a godsend.

 

[uncutsailor]

I grew up on layaway also. It was great for Christmas, to stop kids from snooping about gifts....Ah well, had to end eventually

 

[M4P]

I wonder how many people put something on layaway and then didn't bother to buy it? The program probably cost the stores a lot of money. I know it will hurt some people but business is forced to watch their bottom line in order to provide us with the low prices we demand.

 

[BearMagus]

Lay Away was stopped because only a very small percentage of consumers use it. WM is the last major retailer to have a lay away program. It costs more to operate. Most people today are using credit cards or gift cards. Millions of dollars in merchandise are placed in lay away each year only to be returned to the sales floor right before Christmas due to people not picking them up. The money spent in sending the cancellation notices runs into the millions of dollars. The abandoned merchandise could have sold on the sales floor at full retail. Extra merchandise left over after Christmas has to be marked down resulting in lower profits.

Canning lay away only makes sense. You can purchase your goods with a low interest credit card and have years to pay it off rather than 60 days.

 

[Orlandude]

I never really saw the point of layaway. Do you just go and visit your item every week? lol. Why not just save up the money and buy it when you have the money, or use a credit card?

According to wikipedia (via AP), layaway has been discontinued in all stores.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Layaway

As I've seen it used, a lot of people use layaway to get things that they can't afford at the time and don't want to lose out on the item. Many items sell out or, in the case of WalMart, are offered once and never again. I would say Wikipedia is wrong. There are many, many stores, including major department stores, that still use layaway. A lot of people who, for whatever reason, have no credit or enough cash, depend on layaway.

 

[me12121]

I would say Wikipedia is wrong. There are many, many stores, including major department stores, that still use layaway. A lot of people who, for whatever reason, have no credit or enough cash, depend on layaway.

I meant to say all walmart stores, not all stores. Of course there still must be some stores doing layaway.

 

[Soilwork]

Anything that hurts Walmart sales is a good thing.

 

[QuakrBoi]

"Due to declining layaway sales, we have decided to phase out our layaway program."
That's what the signs say at the store I work at. I think it will just hurt them in the long run. I've also heard that now Target and Toys R Us will be starting layaway programs. I just thought I would share with everyone. I now return you to your regularly scheduled jub programing.

I've worked for Target for the last 4 and a half years and to this day haven't heard anything about us starting layaway. Unless it gets started in all the new stores being built from now on, it won't happen either. They would have to remodel all older stores cuz there's definately not enough stockroom space to dedicate to it.

 

[cocktales]

Hmmmm, most stores "require" a minimum fee, based on the cost of the item being place on lay-away, to put it on lay away; and if the item is NOT picked up, then the $$s spent on that item stays with the store, so it looks like the store "could" possibly make-out on the program, doesn't it??

Hey, we too lived via the lay-away program, for when items were on sale, my Mom/Dad would put them on lay-away and pay some on them monthly till they were payed off and then they picked them up for whatever reason, like birthdays or other holidays....

I think if the lay-away program goes away, it will be just another customer service that is no longer available to the consumer!

Bah Humbug!

 

[cocktales]

Sorry, but I was still distressed by the WalMart going away with lay-away program and I found this written by the New York Times:

Layaway programs


The NYT writes about wage stagnation and the double-edged sword that is Wal-Mart:

"Wal-Mart is a double-edged sword, and both edges are quite sharp," Mr. Bernstein of the Economic Policy Institute said. "On the price side, consumers wouldn't flood Wal-Mart if there wasn't something there they liked, the low prices. On the other hand, by sticking solidly to the low-wage path, they create tons of low-quality jobs that dampen wage and income growth, not just for those who work in Wal-Mart but for surrounding communities as well."
It is a cycle that sustains itself. Edward Wolff, a professor of economics at New York University, said the shift to discount stores "reflects the growing financial strain on families." He added: "Part of the growth in Wal-Mart and discount stores in general is being generated by the stagnation in wages." As the economy has slowed, discount stores gain sales, often at the expense of department stores and specialty retailers.
​

In an era of stagnating wages, programs such as Wal-Mart's layaway plan (pay 10% down and pay the remainder over 60 days before being able to take the purchase home) are enjoying increased popularity with the discount-shopping demographic.

Layaway shoppers put down a deposit and make payments but don't pick up the goods until they have paid in full. That's an increasingly quaint concept in a buy-now-pay-later society.
Still, layaway is far from extinct. The old-fashioned service attracts a small but ardent following. Among the big discount chains, Wal-Mart and Kmart offer layaway, but Target does not. Nowhere is layaway more popular than at Wal-Mart. By paying a 10 percent deposit, customers can put almost anything on layaway other than clearance items and hazardous materials.
Layaway appeals to people who like to do their holiday shopping early but don't have the cash in hand to pay for it. Some people use layaway because they don't have a credit card or because the cards they have are charged close to their limits. Many others just don't like paying credit card interest.

I truly hope that Target and K-Mart take over that niche in the market whereby Walmart has nixed the customer service item that "poorer" people need to get by!
​

 

[cockman1701]

I grew up on layaway. For many people and families who lived paycheck to paycheck it was a godsend.

Exactly. It's gonna hurt the lower income people I think.
Also, I've been told there is some high up big wig working for Walmart now who is from Target. He's the one coming up with the new changes for Walmart such as getting rid of the layaway program. Oh well, I guess we WM associates should just continue to bend over and take it.

 

[Joshua_me]

Goddamnit !!!

Just three more payments and that hot plate would have been mine !

 

[pacz]

America should dump Walmart.

 

[Joshua_me]

America should dump Walmart.

Sadly, that will never happen.

That is, until an even *larger* corp. is formed. It staggers the
imagination that something even larger could come along.

But, I suspect it will.