No real surprises there. People are becoming frugal and retailers will have to realize the "Golden times" don't always happen. People racked up CC debt over the years, and now they are paying it off so they become more frugal.

My habits have changed on spending also.

Kinda sad when paying with cash only when you have the money and buying generics is "disturbing behavior", guess I've been disturbed for the better part of my adult life... :(

7. Rebranding your heartless corporation to look like a lightbulb manufacturing company, or perhaps a some sort of family-friendly fireworks factory (good ol' FFFF & Sons, LLC)

Friends and family are getting cookies and scarves for christmas and I'm eating more ramen.

I can't stand walking into a Wal-Mart.

I think #7 of Disturbing Behaviors observed would be:

7. noticing customer pull into parking lot, only to regain sanity and logic to drive to less crowded, less depressing Target across the street.

Somethings kind of scarey, Some good.

Less use of credit cards = Good
Generic use = Good (most are just as good)

People got wastefull, and are starting to live within their means. I see this as a good thing long term.

It seems hard to believe that 9 out of 10 American families shop at Walmart at least once a year. I guess it's really becoming ubiquitous.

@Parapraxis: Agreed, I have been to a Wal-Mart exactly once in the last 2 1/2 years and that was during a heat wave and all the other stores were sold out of fans...can't stand the place.

Unfortunately out where I live there is pretty much only walmart. Granted I live in the country, but still. I have to drive atleast a half hour to go to a Target when I can go on my lunch break and go to walmart to pick up something I need to have that day.

@ Parapraxis - Yeah, Target, where they overcharge you.

What it also seems to show is that people are living paycheck to paycheck, which is pretty disappointing. If you have to wait till payday to be able to go buy groceries, you need to reconsider your budgeting.

@Parapraxis: Same here. I only did it to pay one Credit Card bill instantly (due date was always 3 days after I get paid leaving little time to pay via mail). Every time I walked into that place it reminded me why I'm glad I switched my grocery buying to Hy Vee (midwest chain for anyone that doesn't know, well known here) and Target for anything else.

As of this month, the CC bill is paid off, so now I have little to no reason to venture back into that hell hole. Hy Vee has some of the friendliest employees I've ever witnessed in every store I've been to in the region. Their motto lives up to the name. Don't know what kool-aid they feed the employees but it works. =P

@Toof_75_75: Thankfully for me I have a visual memory so I pretty much can remember what the price was when I picked it up and if register rings it up wrong, I'll make them correct it.

I don't mind paying a little more either for better service, environment, and product.

@BumpinUgglas: Or a butthole... [consumerist.com]

I'm failing to see how this information is considered "disturbing" at this particular point in time... Are they surprised that people are struggling financially these days? Did widdle-walmart think they (or their customers, rather) would be immune to the effects of our economy?

Ugh. I still shop there, but I loathe the experience every time.

@Toof_75_75: I don't see the article saying that (or anything that focuses specifically on groceries, actually); however, an actual grocery shop seems a sensible thing to me to prioritize if you're not making enough to be able to save money until the next month. A lot better to not have money for crap because you spent it on food than vice versa.

I am kind of wondering about the baby formula, though. Hopefully people are just buying their month's worth right at the start on the same theory.

Are they certain the baby formula buying isn't because the first of the month is when EBT/WIC comes in?

@thatsnotfab: You actually shop at Wal-Mart? I was fairly convinced that no one on the internet shopped at Wal-Mart.

How are these trends disturbing?

The challenge is on for the Consumerist to write "a 6 disturbing behaviors of Walmart" article.

Maybe I'm missing something, but wouldn't the trend described below sort of even out the customer flow?
------------------------
Some come more often because they have less money and can only afford small purchases. Some come less often to save gas.

Dear Consumerist. Thank you for making me think of Kurt Vonnegut's asshole every time I visit Walmart or read a story about it. It brings a smile to my face.

Yay for being that 10th American family that avoids shopping at Wal-Mart!

@samurailynn: I don't think it's so surprising. You have multiple people, who if they shop at Walmart, gain their family inclusion into this list.

For instance, if I went with a friend on a lark to walmart once last year, my family shopped at Walmart last year.

I also think the number of families shopping at walmart is large, but that's another can of worms.

@Parapraxis: What? You don't like being treated like a prisoner/thief by employees? You don't like going elbow-to-elbow with a mob? Weird.

The point-of-sale system at Wal-Mart is the closest thing to Big Brother I've ever seen. It's real-time and worldwide. It's mind-boggling.

And I'm in agreement. These trends aren't disturbing. They are the way things should be running all the time.

@TangDrinker: I think that's what they are saying when they say "...they have more money."

#5 is my favorite:
"Shoppers are changing how often they visit the store. Some come more often because they have less money and can only afford small purchases. Some come less often to save gas."
So, what are you saying? Actually...nothing

@scoobydoo:

Haha i have number 1!!

Walmart employee throws garbage can acroos aisle!

@Parapraxis: Groceries at our nearby Super Walmart are 1/4 - 1/3 less than at other stores, even Target. That's a big savings.

Cash-strapped consumers are buying baby formula at the beginning of the month, when they have more money.

Hey cash-strapped consumers, you know what's cheaper than baby formula and diapers? Anyone? Anyone have a guess? You in the back? No?

Ok, the answer I was looking for was "birth control". You might want to write that down on your shopping list.

@ElizabethD: Only if they weren't keeping track of individual consumers. I'm assuming that they are able to track, roughly how often a particular person visits a store if they used a credit card.

So in effect you could get a distribution that went from a normal probability curve before, to a bimodal distribution after.

@Canino:

Why couldnt your answer be breast feeding? :)

I buy formula at WalMart. Coincidentally, Im there around the same time each month as I buy a months worth of formula at a time.

I hate going to WalMart, but the new baby likes the generic "Gentle" formula and its half the price of the brand name version. Not trying to be cheap, but if I dont need to spend it then I wont.

@Parapraxis: Whenever I'm feeling depressed, I go and shop at Walmart. It feels so liberating to walk out of that place. It's better than Prozac.

@Jonbo298: HyVee rules. I miss it since moving to the Twin Cities. :(

@Canino: Know what else is cheaper then baby formula...breast milk, it's friggin free. I really have very little sypathy for anyone who complains about the price of formula...it is hardly ever a necessity, clearly there are cases where it is but on the whole it is a waste of money that is only making the formula makers rich.

I feel very fortunate that I don't have to time my purchases of essential items (baby formula, prescription meds) yet. I have, however held off on several purchases until I see how the economy and my job security sorts out. The toughest thing has been holding off on the engagement ring for my GF.

@samurailynn: Me too. I know WalMarts exist but only in the abstract sense like Nebraska or the Krispy Kreme burger.

Also stunning, to me, Bank of America in one of their new ads says that 1 in 2 households has some kind of account with them.

@Jabberkaty: Agreed. I am already done with christmas shopping for my family. In total I spent about 45 bucks for 7 people (siblings, nephews and parents). Just hope that they enjoy their scarves and hats (I started working on them in July). My present for my husband will be that I will buy the tools and the wood and his present for me is that he will build me a fence for our backyard. It works for us and doesn't involve going into major debt.

@TangDrinker: Even if it isn't, why the heck is it disturbing? Should they be making more important purchases?

@Toof_75_75: Let's say you make a bit more than the average minimum wage in the US, then you're making about $8/hr, that's roughly $1,300.00/month. Say the average household has 2 incomes, then that gives us $2,600.00 to work with, that's about $30,000/yr, the first $16,050 are tax free, but they have to pay 15% on the rest: -$2,100.

The make about $28,000/yr or $2,333/mo (notice I only took out Fed tax).

Give me an example of what their budgeting should be, so this family could eat, have a roof over their heads, health and all other basic needs.

$2,333 a month for a whole family. Considering that the average American family is 4 people, then they have a bit less than $800 a month for each family member. They have about $30/day per family member to pay for EVERYTHING they need.

$30/day - Budget this.

How can they back up the data in point number 5? It seems like that could statistically create a wash and would show no change in habits on average....

"Cash-strapped consumers are buying baby formula at the beginning of the month, when they have more money."

"Walmart now sees a 2.5% sales increase in the middle of the month, when paychecks are handed out."

How can these two time lines be reconciled?

@Toof_75_75: I'll spare the details of my personal situation, but with the way things are these days, not everyone is living paycheck to paycheck because they don't adhere to a practical budget... It's just plain impossible for some people to put away $100 into their savings account each month, depending on a variety of circumstances.

@jscott73: Can I join this club? ...and I take great pride in not shopping WallyMart, choosing instead to support my neighbors by shopping in their stores buying products made, whenever possible, locally and not in China (or similar places).

#2 doesn't look too disturbing.

9 out of 10 families? Now that's disturbing. I'm lucky enough not to set a foot on a Walmart since 2003.

Happy to be 1 out of 10 :)

Disturbing?

#2 -- People are finally realizing, hey, maybe I should focus on using money I have instead of borrowing money from the banks all the time!

#5 seems to balance out, so they probably don't see much of an effect from that.

#6 seems to go along with my thoughts of #2.

Personally, I haven't stepped foot in a Wally World in over 7 years. Low prices are great, but I'd rather pay more for decent service from a local shop or even a smaller/regional grocery chain.

@TangDrinker: I'm sure that's been the case for a long time. On the other hand, I'd be interested to know if they saw a rise in the use of government aid over the past six months. I know it can take a while to get enrolled in those programs, so I'm not sure if a change would necessarily show up yet.

Well, the worst thing about shopping at a Walmart...is realizing you have something in common with the rest of the people shopping at Walmart.