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Walmart Stores Go Small and Urban http://plannersweb.com/2014/02/walmart-stores-go-small-urban/?prin... <br /> stores are only 15,000 square feet.Walmart has even <br /> opened two college stores,at Georgia Tech in Atlanta <br /> 1' 2 and at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. 3 <br /> ,►i�!+ Each of these stores is less than 5000 square feet in <br /> size. <br /> ! I <br /> Walmart Neighborhood Market in Chicago's Loop. <br /> photo by Eric Allix Rogers,Flickr Creative Commons <br /> license. <br /> Store Type Square Footage Date Initiated <br /> Discount Store 106,000 sq. ft. 1962 <br /> Supercenter 182,000 sq. ft. 1982 <br /> Neighborhood Market 38,000 sq. ft. 1998 <br /> Express Store 15,000 sq. ft. 2011 <br /> College Store Under 5,000 sq. ft. 2013 <br /> Times have changed. The country's largest retailers have oversaturated rural and suburban communities. <br /> The only place left with more spending power than stores is in our cities. Walmart has made its urban <br /> debut. The outstanding question remaining is:what impact will Walmart have on local economies and <br /> wages? <br /> Washington,DC,City Councilman Phil Mendelson,a co-sponsor of unsuccessful legislation that would <br /> have required big box retailers to pay a living wage and benefits, expressed skepticism about the impact <br /> of Walmart on the local economy. "I would say,having the world's largest retailer interested in locating <br /> in the city where we've lost almost every other department store over the last four decades—that's a <br /> good thing. Having an economic competitor who underprices the market and causes a descent to the <br /> bottom, in terms of wages—that is not a good thing."4 <br /> While Walmart is clearly evolving to fit into cities,there is also evidence that the retail giant is willing to break <br /> the mold in smaller towns and suburbs. <br /> 5 of 7 2/28/2014 11:50 AM <br />