So I went to Walmart today, kind of a rant with alittle observation mixed in.

Went in and figured to get some new kitchen things (plates, glasses, utensils etc). So as always I am lifting everything up to see where they are made. What can I say I am a snob ( ) and a lady asks me why am I looking at the spatulas one at a time and not just getting the one that I liked the "look" of the most. I responded "I am looking for one not made in China" ... the look on her face was priceless. So she says "There is a reason its called CHINA MART" (Capitals to show her voice getting louder).



I take a deep breath and tell her, "know the dishes in the next isle?" she responds that she knows they are there. I proceed to tell her half of them are made in the United States and that those are the ones in my cart as the rest were made in China. She responds with "But the Chinese ones are cheaper!"

At this point I got a little annoyed and walked away shaking my head.

My standard size dinner plate cost me 5$ a piece, the Chinese ones were 3$ a piece, I guess its cheaper but is 2$ all that different? And 7$ for 4 glasses also non-Chinese is hard to beat. So why the fuss to save each and every penny.

Sure the knifes from Spain were 13$ a piece when the Chinese ones came in a pack of 4 for a little less.

People talk about being "smart shoppers" but really what they mean is they are only looking for the lowest price. Thanks to that thinking we have little manufacturing to speak of. Luckily if your willing to look around and read (I know a difficult thing for some people in today's world) you can find decent products for about the same (sometimes less) then the junk being offloaded by the boat full at the western docks.



Dimitri

Good for you 'Mitri. I agree with you............. !

It's a compromise. With the import stuff, you will get more quantity for less money. With the US made stuff, you will pay more, but will generally get a much better made product, and you are also supporting "locally". The problem is is it Made in the US, or Assembled in the US? The money will add up if you buy enough, but how long will the product last? Pay a little more up front, and it will pay for itself outlasting the cheaper imported products. Just my .02

Dimitri,

Please.... , things made in China doesn't meant that they are bad and of poor quality.
There are things made in China 2000 years BEFORE Christ was born and they are still serviceable today.

I understand that you want to have better quality product thus do not mind to pay a bit more, thats is fine, but generalising things based on the geographical location of its factory is akin to saying that "all blonds are dumb", "all wine are sour" and "no Caucasian eat rice".

Do you know that almost all MOBILE PHONES, GPS and EPIRBs internal PCB are now made in CHINA?
They have as many quality products as the bad ones.

Choose what you buy, base your choice on quality, not the geography (or price).

Oh well.. I am irritable today..

Gelan,

Yes the majority of consumer electronics come from China but not all. Mainly because environmental controls are non-existent so companies need not worry about poisoning the air, water and land instead of paying for it to be properly disposed of.

Which reminds me the new bought AMD CPU (Made in China) lasted 2 months while the old one made in Malaysia lasted 5 years and was only replaced cause the motherboard failed (as far as I know the CPU was still good).

Easier to avoid the whole country that does not care for anyone else's intellectual property rights, no real support (less a few bigger brands) when the product takes a dump and fails, and way to get back at the manufacturers when they use drugs to paint toys for little kids in the age group that still likes to suck on them.

I'll buy from countries such as any North American country, The western European countries, the Scandinavian countries, Israel, South Africa, Australia, Malaysia and Taiwan, but I generally avoid the rest as best as I can whenever possible.

Dimitri

But, but...Dimitri...Isn't everything in Canada imported?

I like your way of thinkin Dimitri . I agree
Joe

Bushmaster wrote:

But, but...Dimitri...Isn't everything in Canada imported?

Most, but importation is NOT the problem. And I am not against buying imported goods.

Mind you there is fridges and the like made in Canada sold at Sears here if you bother to look at the labels, as well as a great deal of plastic injected molded parts are. As well as the Savage line of Rim-Fires to keep this post gun related. Never mind many cars and trucks built here and things the average consumer would never buy as they are industrial products.

Funny thing is, per straw Canadian drinking straws at my grocery store cost less then the Chinese ones.

Dimitri

So what myths are you dispelling and facts are you proving?

Walmart sells "stuff" cheap, we all know that.

They also import a LOT of "cheap" stuff.

If you weren't looking to buy "cheap stuff", you wouldn't be shopping there.

That's like saying you went to the local Ford Dealer and were upset that they didn't have good prices on Chevy's.

Except Joe, most stores sell the same stuff today more or less. Hard to get away from it.

Dimitri

So I'll ask again...

what myths are you dispelling and facts are you proving?

The myth that Walmart only sells Chinese goods and the fact they have goods sourced else where you can get if you bother to look at the products themselves and not the lowest price point. I guess. Was more of a rant on consumers scr*wing our economy and our manufacturing in 1st world countries just to save a buck.

Dimitri

Dimitri wrote:

The myth that Walmart only sells Chinese goods and the fact they have goods sourced else where you can get if you bother to look at the products themselves and not the lowest price point. I guess. Was more of a rant on consumers scr*wing our economy and our manufacturing in 1st world countries just to save a buck. Dimitri

Never heard that myth...

I heard that Walmart will sell whatever you want at the lowest price you can find.

Simple laws of supply and demand....

Brand and Loyalty marketing are powerful tools, but they fall by the wayside in tough economic times.

Dimitri wrote:

The myth that Walmart only sells Chinese goods and the fact they have goods sourced else where you can get if you bother to look at the products themselves and not the lowest price point. I guess. Was more of a rant on consumers scr*wing our economy and our manufacturing in 1st world countries just to save a buck. Dimitri

So maybe the title of this thread should be changed?

"How the Well-To-Do should spend more than us poor saps for the same crap"....

Now who are you calling the "well to do" ??

Dimitri