Wal-Mart pares down gun sales
I was very surprised to know that guns are sold at supermarkets in the US.
Of course, I understand that they are sold because there are people who buy them. However, generally speaking, I do not understand the fact. And, even if Wal-Mart stops selling guns at 1,000 stores, there are still more than 2,000 Wal-Mart stores that continue selling them. I have no words, but am just astonished by the US's generosity...
(Quote)
Posted on Sat, Apr. 15, 2006
Wal-Mart pares down gun sales
Firearms won't be sold in about 1,000 stores
MARCUS KABEL
Associated Press
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has decided to stop selling guns in about a third of its U.S. stores in what it calls a marketing decision based on lack of demand in some places, a company spokeswoman said Friday.
The world's largest retailer decided last month to remove firearms from about 1,000 stores in favor of stocking other sporting goods, in line with a "Store of the Community" strategy for boosting sales by paying closer attention to local differences in demand.
"This decision is based on diminished customer relevancy and demand in these markets," said Wal-Mart spokeswoman Jolanda Stewart.
Hunting and shooting advocates said it was a surprise that Wal-Mart, which has a strong hunting and fishing tradition, would surrender the field in at least some areas to big-box outfitting stores like Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's.
The National Rifle Association said it was concerned people in rural areas, where Wal-Mart may be the only purveyor, might no longer have access to guns.
The change could be a boon for mom-and-pop hunting stores that lost business when Wal-Mart moved in, said Steve Wagner, spokesman for the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the shooting, hunting and firearms industry.
Wal-Mart's critics and gun control advocates welcomed the move.
"This a good first step," said Paul Blank, director of the union-funded group WakeUp WalMart.com, which contends there is a growing public safety concern about violence and crime at Wal-Mart stores.
The Violence Policy Center, a gun control group, said Wal-Mart's decision reflected what it called a decline in gun ownership. Wal-Mart's Stewart declined to specify what stores were affected.
http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/business/14348568.htm?source=rss&channel=charlotte_business
(Unquote)
