In Charlotte I had the choice of Harris Teeter, Food Lion, Publix, Super Bi-Lo, Lowe's Foods, The Fresh Market, Costco, and SuperTarget, all within a few miles of me. If I wanted something really nice I could go to the flagship Morrocroft Harris Teeter, which was as nice as H-E-B Central Market. I could drive a little bit farther and had Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and Earthfare. Food Lion wasn't that different from your typical OKC grocery store but everything else was a huge step up. The typical OKC Homeland wouldn't stay open there because competition was just too stiff. I never had to step foot in a Wal-Mart unless I wanted to.

I never had to step foot in a Wal-Mart unless I wanted to.

You still don't have to.

At least we have a few options other then Walmart. Its good to see that Uptown/Buy 4 Less is expanding the Uptown brand and Sprouts is expanding. I'm still waiting for Fresh Market. They told me that a store is coming. I wish I knew how soon. Its been almost 2 years ago that they told me that they had signed a lease on a location. Maybe that fell through. When Costco finally opens in Tulsa, I'll make a few trips up that way for some shopping.

At least we have a few options other then Walmart. Its good to see that Uptown/Buy 4 Less is expanding the Uptown brand and Sprouts is expanding. I'm still waiting for Fresh Market. They told me that a store is coming. I wish I knew how soon. Its been almost 2 years ago that they told me that they had signed a lease on a location. Maybe that fell through. When Costco finally opens in Tulsa, I'll make a few trips up that way for some shopping.

Me too. I'm a diehard Costco fan. I am excited that they are opening in Tulsa! Love the Fresh Market also. Glad they have one in Tulsa. Whenever I am up that way, I always stop by.

Anybody know if there is truth to the rumor that the 122nd and May Homeland is up for sale?

It would be awesome for it to be sold and remodeled. Lately it has almost been as bad as the 18th and Classen location.

The rumorville at the abstract company my dad works for is that Whole Foods is going in at 36th and Main where the Wrights/IGA used to be.

I know that Sprouts is out looking for more locations. I've been told a few new areas of town where they are looking. I did tell the person that it would be nice if they put one in far northwest OKC. I don't know of them looking in the area.

The rumorville at the abstract company my dad works for is that Whole Foods is going in at 36th and Main where the Wrights/IGA used to be.

I heard a similar rumor about two years ago . . . that Whole Foods wanted that property, but Wright's/IGA was able to renew their lease . . . I really hope these rumors are true. It would be fantastic to have Whole Foods in Norman.

I know that Sprouts is out looking for more locations. I've been told a few new areas of town where they are looking. I did tell the person that it would be nice if they put one in far northwest OKC. I don't know of them looking in the area.

I hope this comes about. There was a rumor a while back about Sprouts coming to MacArthur and 122nd but that seems to have died down. Far NW OKC is hugely underserved on quality grocers for such a nice area of town. Since the remodel the Homeland at 122nd and Rockwell is a little better, but it would be nice to have a Sprouts, Uptown Grocery, or one of the newer format Crests.

I remember back in the 80s (I believe) when Food Lion came to OKC area. I think they opened 4-6 stores right out of the gate. I remember that some sort of bad rumor about them came out and they closed up about as fast as they opened. Does anyone remember what the rumor was about? Might have already been discussed in the thread but haven't read this whole thread.

I also remember a little farther back that IGA had a good amount of stores in the area. Seemed like decent enough grocery stores but they have all but vanished. Never understood why there were no Kroger stores around these parts. They are in states around us but none here that I am aware of.

I have been to Whittakers in the past,long time ago for something or another and it was fairly late,prob around midnight. The store was pretty filthy but there were quite a few folks shopping there. There used to be several other Whittaker stores around town. I think the orig Whittaker dies years ago and the other stores closed up,sold off or whatever. Don't know if the one on 10th/May is still in the Whittaker family

I remember back in the 80s (I believe) when Food Lion came to OKC area. I think they opened 4-6 stores right out of the gate. I remember that some sort of bad rumor about them came out and they closed up about as fast as they opened. Does anyone remember what the rumor was about? Might have already been discussed in the thread but haven't read this whole thread.

I also remember a little farther back that IGA had a good amount of stores in the area. Seemed like decent enough grocery stores but they have all but vanished. Never understood why there were no Kroger stores around these parts. They are in states around us but none here that I am aware of.

I have been to Whittakers in the past,long time ago for something or another and it was fairly late,prob around midnight. The store was pretty filthy but there were quite a few folks shopping there. There used to be several other Whittaker stores around town. I think the orig Whittaker dies years ago and the other stores closed up,sold off or whatever. Don't know if the one on 10th/May is still in the Whittaker familyThe Food Lion rumor had to do with tainted meat, apparently started and spread as part of a union dispute. The only one I remember in the city was at Hefner and Rockwell; the building between Walgreen's and Walmart Neighborhood Market was built for them.

IGA was a marketing group for one of the big food distributors, either Scrivner or Fleming but I don't remember which. After both distributors died, IGA itself vanished. I think Snyder's was one of the last IGA mini-chains in the area, with stores at NW 23 and Council and at NW 23 and Meridian, plus some elsewhere.

The only Whittaker's that I ever patronized was on the south side of NW 39, a block or so east of MacArthur. It wasn't anything great. They also had a convenience store, called Whit's Little Store, a bit south of Britton Road on Council.

I remember back in the 80s (I believe) when Food Lion came to OKC area. I think they opened 4-6 stores right out of the gate. I remember that some sort of bad rumor about them came out and they closed up about as fast as they opened. Does anyone remember what the rumor was about? Might have already been discussed in the thread but haven't read this whole thread.

I think this is what you are referring to.

Issue Review: Food Lion vs. Prime Time Live -- 02/01/1997 - MediaNomics (http://archive.mrc.org/medianomics/1997/mn19970201c.asp)

IGA was a marketing group for one of the big food distributors, either Scrivner or Fleming
but I don't remember which. After both distributors died, IGA itself vanished. I think Snyder's
was one of the last IGA mini-chains in the area, with stores at NW 23 and Council and at
NW 23 and Meridian, plus some elsewhere.
There was one in Yukon at Cornwell and US 66.

The only Whittaker's that I ever patronized was on the south side of NW 39,
a block or so east of MacArthur. It wasn't anything great. They also had a
convenience store, called Whit's Little Store, a bit south of Britton Road on
Council.
My Dad went to school with the Whittaker's in Cushing. The one on NW 10th
was supposedly separate from the other Whittaker's but still part of the family.
That's what Dad said.

Except for their produce I like Aldi.

Except for their produce I like Aldi.Can you please explain to me what drives you to shop there? I don't have anything against it, it just seems kind of a depressing place. They must be doing something right though because there is always a fair amount of people there.

New mainstream grocers still reluctant to enter Oklahoma City market | News OK (http://newsok.com/new-mainstream-grocers-still-reluctant-to-enter-oklahoma-city-market/article/5384878)

Interesting that she notes that Trader Joe's is close to a deal in Tulsa but does not include OKC in their 2 year plan. She also notes that Tulsa isn't in the two year plan. It would seem like Tulsa and OKC are blatantly obvious places Trader Joes should expand to. Then again, TJ's hasn't been in DFW for long at all.

New mainstream grocers still reluctant to enter Oklahoma City market | News OK (http://newsok.com/new-mainstream-grocers-still-reluctant-to-enter-oklahoma-city-market/article/5384878)

When I read this yesterday this stuck out..


Walmart has long dominated Oklahoma City's grocery scene, so I suspect that has a lot to do with it. When I have talked to a few commercial real estate brokers about it

They have told me that they have not heard of any plans for any new mainstream grocers such as Kroger or H-E-B to enter the scene. The short answer is Walmart.

Everyone likes to point fingers all over the place, and most regularly at liquor laws, but I've always maintained, and it looks like the brokers do as well, the problem is Walmart and it's market dominance.

Can you please explain to me what drives you to shop there? I don't have anything against it, it just seems kind of a depressing place. They must be doing something right though because there is always a fair amount of people there.

The driving force is low cost., The house brands are sourced from the same companies that have familiar names and quality but not the price tag. While there are some name brand items, by and large they are few. They employ cost saving techniques such as no baggers, no shopping bags, and a deposit on using a shopping cart.

Everyone likes to point fingers all over the place, and most regularly at liquor laws, but I've always maintained, and it looks like the brokers do as well, the problem is Walmart and it's market dominance.

This is what I have said all along and have taken a lot of flack for it. While it's true that Wal-Mart is a dominating force everywhere, nowhere is it as dominant as it is in OKC outside of small town America. This is no accident; Wal-Mart specifically targeted OKC to test their market saturation strategy. Their goal was to monopolize the grocery market here and for the most part they have been successful.

This is what I have said all along and have taken a lot of flack for it. While it's true that Wal-Mart is a dominating force everywhere, nowhere is it as dominant as it is in OKC outside of small town America. This is no accident; Wal-Mart specifically targeted OKC to test their market saturation strategy. Their goal was to monopolize the grocery market here and for the most part they have been successful.

This is very common tactics for them. They grew initially doing this with hardware. They set out a while back with the goal of dominating the toy market (taking over from KB Toys and Toys R US) and then moved into the grocery market. I feel like they don't even care if an individual store is profitable... just if as a whole they can dominate a market and keep anyone else from making any money. And we in OKC are in Wal-Mart land USA.

The driving force is low cost., The house brands are sourced from the same companies that have familiar names and quality but not the price tag. While there are some name brand items, by and large they are few. They employ cost saving techniques such as no baggers, no shopping bags, and a deposit on using a shopping cart.

I find ALDI to be a good place to shop if you're not specific on your entire list. I hit the entrance row, and get the stuff on special. I also find their milk and dairy products to be priced lower than Wal-Mart or Crest (about 1 buck cheaper on the milk). Definitely don't have the selection for every shopping trip, but worth it for the essentials.

A note on the shopping cart deposit - I rarely have to pay it, since someone usually offers me their cart.. and we just tend to pay it forward.

IGA was a marketing group for one of the big food distributors, either Scrivner or Fleming but I don't remember which. After both distributors died, IGA itself vanished.

Jim,
Scrivner was the distributor for Foodworld, a lot of independents, Paycash (Tennessee), Bogaart (Kansas) and a few others, Fleming was IGA. Fleming bought Scrivner and about ten-fifteen years later filed bankruptcy and went out of business.
C. T.

This is what I have said all along and have taken a lot of flack for it. While it's true that Wal-Mart is a dominating force everywhere, nowhere is it as dominant as it is in OKC outside of small town America. This is no accident; Wal-Mart specifically targeted OKC to test their market saturation strategy. Their goal was to monopolize the grocery market here and for the most part they have been successful.

You made the same remark in the thread about the new Walmart in SW OKC. This is the response I made to that and I guess you overlooked it.


Here is a comparison of number of stores in various metros in our part of the country according to Walmart's website. The numbers for OKC are not out of proportion to the other cities (except for KC) based on the population.

Oklahoma City - 41
Tulsa - 35
Kansas City - 42
Wichita - 25
Little Rock - 32

Aldi's has some good prices on produce. I shop at Sprouts and Aldi's for produce. Sprouts for meat and bulk bins. Nautural Foods for bulk items and dairy products (Kalona). Sam's for tp and paper towels and a few other items. Walmart for plastic ware and eye drops. Just a bit here and a bit there.

HEB/Central Market still has plenty of expansion opportunities in Texas, they are are not looking to expand outside of Texas or Mexico with the Mexican subsidiary.

You made the same remark in the thread about the new Walmart in SW OKC. This is the response I made to that and I guess you overlooked it.

Kansas City is a metro area of 2.4 million people while OKC is a metro area of 1.3 million people.

There's a big difference between 42 Wal-Mart's for 2.4 million people and 41 Wal-Mart's for 1.3 million people.

Kansas City is a metro area of 2.4 million people while OKC is a metro area of 1.3 million people.

There's a big difference between 42 Wal-Mart's for 2.4 million people and 41 Wal-Mart's for 1.3 million people.
+1

You made the same remark in the thread about the new Walmart in SW OKC. This is the response I made to that and I guess you overlooked it.

"Oklahoma City - 41
Tulsa - 35
Kansas City - 42
Wichita - 25
Little Rock - 32"

Let's look at this crap further

Oklahoma City MSA: 1,322,429

Tulsa MSA: 961,561

Kansas City MSA: 2,393,623

Wichita MSA: 637,989

Little Rock MSA: 898,683

Now you can do your own math with those cities. That is a very stupid list of cities to compare OKC to with the exception of Tulsa. Kansas city is much larger than OKC and the other cities are much smaller.

Peer cities and their populations from lowest to highest:

New Orleans: 1,240,977

Richmond: 1,245,764

Louisville: 1,262,261

Oklahoma City: 1,319,677

Memphis: 1,341,746

Jacksonville: 1,394,624

Milwaukee: 1,569,659

Number of Walmart's in each MSA:

New Orleans:

Richmond:

Louisville:

Oklahoma City:

Memphis:

Jacksonville:

Milwaukee:



this post is not finished. I am going to finish this post when I get some time I've been slammed.

The comparison was to nearby cities in this region of the country.

Ah, well, I think it is more appropriate to compare peer cities seeing as Walmart is a global corporation. I will finish the number of Walmart's per metro.

Ah, well, I think it is more appropriate to compare peer cities seeing as Walmart is a global corporation. I will finish the number of Walmart's per metro.

I agree. Wal-Mart tends to dominate rural areas nationwide as urban areas tend to have well established traditional grocery chains defending their territory. OKC is of course the exception. To see how big of an outlier OKC really is, its best to compare it to similarly sized markets rather than much smaller ones where you would expect Wal-Mart to dominate.

OKC was one of the first markets for the Neighborhood Market concept, it would make sense that there are more there than other places as they had a significant head start. We just got them here in Denver in 2012 and did not have them in Austin when we left. I have heard they are expanding (or planning to) in Austin. OKC has been a long time test market for Walmart, I believe the first Sam's Club was the one in Midwest City. Walmart had the Hypermart concept in an old mall in Garland in the early 90's and that eventually morphed into the Supercenter concept. The Neighborhood Market grocery concept didn't start until around 1998. Other chains like Kroger or the new Safeway had plenty of opportunity to move into OKC before the Neighborhood Market or Supercenter concepts took hold, none did.

OKC was one of the first markets for the Neighborhood Market concept, it would make sense that there are more there than other places as they had a significant head start. We just got them here in Denver in 2012 and did not have them in Austin when we left. I have heard they are expanding (or planning to) in Austin. OKC has been a long time test market for Walmart, I believe the first Sam's Club was the one in Midwest City. Walmart had the Hypermart concept in an old mall in Garland in the early 90's and that eventually morphed into the Supercenter concept. The Neighborhood Market grocery concept didn't start until around 1998. Other chains like Kroger or the new Safeway had plenty of opportunity to move into OKC before the Neighborhood Market or Supercenter concepts took hold, none did.

Correct. OKC had Albertson's, but they pulled out of the market in 2007. Does anybody know if Albertson's leaving the market was because they couldn't compete with Wal-Mart or if it was for another reason? DFW still has their Albertson's stores. Other than Albertson's, there were no major chains here by the time Wal-Mart began its aggressive expansion which is why it made perfect sense for Wal-Mart to come in with the Neighborhood Market concept. In my opinion, Neighborhood Markets don't have the negative effect on surrounding area that Supercenters do.

They were in a deep hole financially much like Safeway in the 80's when Homeland and other Safeway spin offs (like Apple Tree in Houston, San Antonio and Austin) came into being. They shut down stores all over including all the ones in Austin, most of the Albertson's stores here closed as well. We have a few left on our side of town but the ironic thing is when WMNM moved in there they went into a lot of former Albertson's locations. Albertson's has since been bought out of bankruptcy by Cerebrus and were reformed as New Albertson's. They are in the process of merging with Safeway.

In the old construct of they Albertson's had a unique business structure as the ones in Oklahoma, Texas and surrounding states were a different division of the parent company. It is kind of odd how Albertson's has some stores in scattered markets, kind of like K-Mart. It would seem that concentration would help with distribution costs.

San Antonio also has to deal with a one grocer monopoly as well. That one grocer being H-E-B. H-E-B is based in San Antonio and been around for some 70 years, which explains their dominance.

They've successfully run out of town the following grocery chains: Piggly Wiggly, Krogers, Albertsons and more. They were able to do this by always providing a lower cost for groceries. Lower enough that it became unprofitable for those chains to continue operating in San Antonio. As of 2014, H-E-B had a market share of 51.8% in the San Anonio metro area. That's actually down from 2013, when their market share was 53.4%. Their share used to be in the mid 60s.

Wal-Mart is also very aggressive with the San Antonio market. Not as aggressive as they've seen to have been with OKC it seems. But Wal-Mart has opened dozens of supercenters in the past decade as well as opened their first Neighborhood Market less than a year ago and then exploded with growth. Literally, they opened the first NM last March (http://m.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/blog/2014/03/walmart-debuting-first-neighborhood-market.html) and there are now four Neighborhood Markets in the city. Not metro area, just city, with plans for many more. Bleh. Wal-Mart's market share in 2014 was 22.9%, which was down from 23.3% from 2013.

Thankfully, we have many other grocery options across the city, hence both H-E-B and Wal-Mart seeing a decrease in market share, including multiple Trader Joe's. I love love love TJ's. The newest one to open, opened close to me in Stone Oak, which is very convenient.

Don't get me wrong, I love H-E-B as well. They're great and I really love their new Stone Oak store (http://ww2.hdnux.com/photos/30/55/27/6477297/3/622x350.jpg). It's beyond awesome.

San Antonio also has to deal with a one grocer monopoly as well. That one grocer being H-E-B. H-E-B is based in San Antonio and been around for some 70 years, which explains their dominance.

They've successfully run out of town the following grocery chains: Piggly Wiggly, Krogers, Albertsons and more. They were able to do this by always providing a lower cost for groceries. Lower enough that it became unprofitable for those chains to continue operating in San Antonio. As of 2014, H-E-B had a market share of 51.8% in the San Anonio metro area. That's actually down from 2013, when their market share was 53.4%.

Wal-Mart is also very aggressive with the San Antonio market. Not as aggressive as they've seen to have been with OKC it seems. But Wal-Mart has opened dozens of supercenters in the past decade as well as opened their first Neighborhood Market less than a year ago and then exploded with growth. Literally, they opened the first NM last March (http://m.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/blog/2014/03/walmart-debuting-first-neighborhood-market.html) and there are now six Neighborhood Markets in the city. Not metro area, just city, with plans for many more. Bleh. Wal-Mart's market share in 2014 was 22.So sorry you have to deal with HEB. lol ;)

So sorry you have to deal with HEB. lol ;)

Ha!

A few years ago there was a lot of complaining about it because they ran Albertsons out, there's still a small minority that complain. Transplants especially, since many are used to multiple national chain grocery stores, but once they find out how awesome HEB is, the complaints quiet down. And since Trader Joe's entered the market in 2012, that's helped temper people's dislike for the monopoly.

Ha!

A few years ago there was a lot of complaining about it, still is actually. Transplants especially, since many are used to multiple grocery stores but once they find out how awesome HEB is, the complaints quiet down. And since Trader Joe's entered the market in 2012, that's helped temper people's dislike for a monopoly.HEB seems really cool. I am not too familiar with them and they weren't very prominent in Dallas at all. I think they have one or two locations in the far south parts of the DFW metro.

I really wish they would come to OKC, but they have stated they have no plans to expand outside of Texas and Mexico. :(

HEB stores vary a lot between the new ones and the old ones. The store that was closest to our house in Austin (1st & WM Cannon) was an old store that we rarely went to because it was cramped and they didn't carry some of the items that we would get at the Brodie & Cannon store that we shopped at most of the time.

HEB seems really cool. I am not too familiar with them and they weren't very prominent in Dallas at all. I think they have one or two locations in the far south parts of the DFW metro.

I really wish they would come to OKC, but they have stated they have no plans to expand outside of Texas and Mexico. :(

H-E-B is very strategic and has no problem with remaining in the markets they're in long term.

I mean, they aren't in the Dallas or Fort Worth city areas, even though they own multiple parcels of land in both cities.

They have no stores in El Paso, even though El Paso's grocery situation is almost as bad if not worse than OKC and they'd easily go in and dominate.

They have no stores in the panhandle of Texas either.

H-E-B is a great grocery store, one of the better mainstream ones I've been in. I also think they would have a decent shot in OKC if they would give this market a chance, but being that A) they don't have a significant DFW presence other than their upscale Central Market concept and B) they have stated clearly that they don't want to expand out of Texas or Mexico, it is extremely unlikely any H-E-B stores will be happening in OKC any time in the near future. 23.3% marketshare for Wal-Mart in San Antonio really isn't anything to complain about. I believe its over 65% in OKC, probably far and away the highest of all metro areas over 500,000 in population.

What's amazing is people have been complaining about grocery stores in OKC for many years now yet improvement has been extremely slow. Crest's Fresh Market concept is the kind of store people are wanting, but they have been very slow to expand. At least there are decent stores in the metro now, if only a few. Five years ago a Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market was as good as it could get in OKC.

23.3 percent market share was in 2013. In 2014, that number dropped to 22.9 percent.

IMO, 1 percent is too much. lol

H-E-B is very strategic and has no problem with remaining in the markets they're in long term.

I mean, they aren't in the Dallas or Fort Worth city areas, even though they own multiple parcels of land in both cities.

They have no stores in El Paso, even though El Paso's grocery situation is almost as bad if not worse than OKC and they'd easily go in and dominate.

They have no stores in the panhandle of Texas either.

They have stores in Midland and Odessa which seems a bit of an outlier as I think they have limited distribution out there.

I know they are planning to enter DFW but they are very deliberate when expanding as you stated. When they do decide to enter that market it will be a bunch of stores at once. I think the Lake Charles experiment kind of sharpened their focus.

They have stores in Midland and Odessa which seems a bit of an outlier as I think they have limited distribution out there.

I know they are planning to enter DFW but they are very deliberate when expanding as you stated. When they do decide to enter that market it will be a bunch of stores at once. I think the Lake Charles experiment kind of sharpened their focus.

Well, those two towns are in west Texas, not the panhandle. As I said, there are no H-E-B's in the panhandle.

Also, there are no firm plans or short term plans to enter the DFW market.

Kansas City is a metro area of 2.4 million people while OKC is a metro area of 1.3 million people.

There's a big difference between 42 Wal-Mart's for 2.4 million people and 41 Wal-Mart's for 1.3 million people.

Which, of course, is why I specifically said the comparison with Kansas City was different. Did you even read what I said.

"Oklahoma City - 41
Tulsa - 35
Kansas City - 42
Wichita - 25
Little Rock - 32"

Let's look at this crap further

Oklahoma City MSA: 1,322,429

Tulsa MSA: 961,561

Kansas City MSA: 2,393,623

Wichita MSA: 637,989

Little Rock MSA: 898,683

Now you can do your own math with those cities. That is a very stupid list of cities to compare OKC to with the exception of Tulsa. Kansas city is much larger than OKC and the other cities are much smaller.

Peer cities and their populations from lowest to highest:

New Orleans: 1,240,977

Richmond: 1,245,764

Louisville: 1,262,261

Oklahoma City: 1,319,677

Memphis: 1,341,746

Jacksonville: 1,394,624

Milwaukee: 1,569,659

Number of Walmart's in each MSA:

New Orleans:

Richmond:

Louisville:

Oklahoma City:

Memphis:

Jacksonville:

Milwaukee:



this post is not finished. I am going to finish this post when I get some time I've been slammed.

Plupan, other than KC the comparison with other cities in our area is very accurate when you compare population to number of Walmart stores in OKC. Any differences with OKC are insignificant.

Which, of course, is why I specifically said the comparison with Kansas City was different. Did you even read what I said.

Than why not just compare OKC with other cities of similar size in the Midwest instead of small metro areas that are easily more dominated by Wal-Mart.

That not just compare OKC with other cities of similar size in the Midwest instead of small metro areas that are easier more dominated by Wal-Mart.

I compared OKC with metro areas in our area and was responding to a poster who basically said OKC had more domination by Walmart than any other city.


This is what I have said all along and have taken a lot of flack for it. While it's true that Wal-Mart is a dominating force everywhere, nowhere is it as dominant as it is in OKC outside of small town America. This is no accident; Wal-Mart specifically targeted OKC to test their market saturation strategy.

I stand by my post. The other cities I mentioned aren't small town America.

I compared OKC with metro areas in our area and was responding to a poster who basically said OKC had more domination by Walmart than any other city.



I stand by my post. The other cities I mentioned aren't small town America.

But significantly smaller. Why must we think in these terms? Shouldn't we be striving to have a retail scene like KC? KC metro and OKC have a similar land area, yet a different retail scene and a totally different population number. OKC is dominated by Walmart. All one has to look at is the grocery share that Walmart dominates over.

But significantly smaller. Why must we think in these terms? Shouldn't we be striving to have a retail scene like KC? KC metro and OKC have a similar land area, yet a different retail scene and a totally different population number. OKC is dominated by Walmart. All one has to look at is the grocery share that Walmart dominates over.

I wasn't defending Walmart in the least and would welcome other options. As I said I was specifically responding to the post which said that said "no where is it (Walmart) as dominant as it is in OKC outside of small town America". That statement was incorrect.

Assuming that the population figures given by plupan are fairly accurate. This is the number of people in each metro area that are served by one Walmart store.

Oklahoma City - 32,000
Tulsa - 27,000
Little Rock - 28,000
Wichita - 25,000
Kansas City - 56,000

Of the original cities I listed, only Kansas City ranks better than OKC when figuring the dominance of Walmart stores in their metro areas.

Here is the same information for the other cities mentioned by plupan and it's not too surprising as you get further away from our area.

New Orleans - 38,000
Memphis - 57,000
Richmond - 68,000
Louisville - 45,000
Jacksonville - 54,000
Milwaukee - 39,000

A few others are

Omaha - 37,000
Denver - 51,800
Baton Rouge - 25,000
Albuquerque - 50,000

I wasn't defending Walmart in the least and would welcome other options. As I said I was specifically responding to the post which said that said "no where is it (Walmart) as dominant as it is in OKC outside of small town America". That statement was incorrect.

Assuming that the population figures given by plupan are fairly accurate. This is the number of people in each metro area that are served by one Walmart store.

Oklahoma City - 32,000
Tulsa - 27,000
Little Rock - 28,000
Wichita - 25,000
Kansas City - 56,000

Of the original cities I listed, only Kansas City ranks better than OKC when figuring the dominance of Walmart stores in their metro areas.

I wonder what percentage of the marketshare Wal-Mart has in those cities. All of them except for OKC has a strong competitor that is holding its own against Wal-Mart. Little Rock has Kroger, Tulsa has Reasor's, and Wichita has Dillons. My guess would be that OKC's Wal-Mart marketshare is much higher since there isn't a strong competitor here.

I wonder what percentage of the marketshare Wal-Mart has in those cities. All of them except for OKC has a strong competitor that is holding its own against Wal-Mart. Little Rock has Kroger, Tulsa has Reasor's, and Wichita has Dillons. My guess would be that OKC's Wal-Mart marketshare is much higher since there isn't a strong competitor here.

That's possible, but based on the number of stores compared to the population, they aren't as dominant in OKC as they are in the other cities. As far as I'm concerned every store in OKC is a strong competitor to Walmart since I rarely go there for any groceries.

Oklahoma is ranked second behind Arkansas with the highest number of Walmarts.

The Ten States Where Walmart Is Everywhere - 24/7 Wall St. (http://247wallst.com/retail/2011/05/20/the-ten-states-where-walmart-is-everywhere/3/)


To put some things in perspective, California, a state that has almost 40 million people is served by 179 Walmart's. Oklahoma has 103 and only has a population of 4 million.

The Five States Where Walmart Can’t Break Through

Read more: The Ten States Where Walmart Is Everywhere - 24/7 Wall St. The Ten States Where Walmart Is Everywhere - 24/7 Wall St. (http://247wallst.com/retail/2011/05/20/the-ten-states-where-walmart-is-everywhere/#ixzz3PJM7bcYm)
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5. Vermont
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 6.39
> Total No. of Stores: 4
> Median Income: $51,618 (20th Highest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 11.4% (12th Lowest)

4. New Jersey
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 6.26
> Total No. of Stores: 55
> Median Income: $64,918 (3rd Highest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 9.4% (4th Lowest)

3. Hawaii
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 5.88
> Total No. of Stores: 8
> Median Income: $64,098 (5th Highest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 10.4% (8th Lowest)

2. New York
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 4.9
> Total No. of Stores: 95
> Median Income: $54,659 (15th Highest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 14.2% (Tied for 25th Highest)

1. California
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 4.8
> Total No. of Stores: 179
> Median Income: $58,931 (9th Highest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 14.2% (Tied for 25th Highest)

Top five states where Walmart dominates

5. Alabama
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 21.13
> Total No. of Stores: 101
> Median Income: $40,489 (5th Lowest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 17.5% (6th Highest)

There are 101 Walmart stores in Alabama, 92 of which are Supercenters. Unlike similar states, growth in Alabama has continued at a strong pace. Since the first Alabama store opening in 1979, a new store has opened in the state almost every year. There are currently plans to open a new Supercenter in Huntstville this summer. As evidence of the company’s popularity, most of the Walmart stores in the state which were not originally Supercenters have been converted into Supercenters, the largest type of Walmart store.

4. Kansas
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 21.38
> Total No. of Stores: 61
> Median Income: $47,817 (23rd Lowest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 13.4% (25th Lowest)

Kansas presence on this list suggests that a state’s proximity to Arkansas may be more important to Walmart’s success than the number of low-income shoppers. While the average income of its residents is close to the national average, its proximity to Walmart’s central distribution network secures its place on this list. Access to the Arkansas hub makes it more efficient to open stores. Although growth slowed in the early 2000’s, Walmart is finding other ways to boost sales. According to the Wall Street Journal, Kansas stores which had stopped selling guns five years ago will start selling them again.

Also Read: Yum! Brands Rapid Growth Is Over
3. Mississippi
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 22.24
> Total No. of Stores: 66
> Median Income: $36,646 (Lowest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 21.9% (Highest)

Walmart has a huge presence in Mississippi. Mississippi is located along Arkansas’ eastern border. It is the poorest state in the nation. The company employs just under 2 percent of Mississippi’s total labor force. In the 2011 fiscal year, the company paid more than $39.7 million in state and local taxes. In April, Walmart donated a meager $1 million to support relief efforts for recent natural emergencies, including the storms, and subsequent flooding, which hit the state. A.J. Holloway, Mayor of Biloxi, told a local news station that he expected “some big things” following the opening of a Walmart Superstore in the city.

2. Oklahoma
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 27.46
> Total No. of Stores: 103
> Median Income: $41,664 (6th Lowest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 16.2% (15th Highest)

Oklahoma, which sits on Arkansas’ western border, is in a similar position to Mississippi. More than 32,000 residents of the state work at Walmart, just under 2 percent of the labor force. Oklahomans are also doing a large amount of shopping at the chain. Between July 2009 and March 2011, $506 million out of $1.2 billion in food stamps spent in the state were spent at Walmart, according to the AP. Unfortunately for residents of Oklahoma, they do not receive all of the same Walmart deals as the rest of the country. Due to a law in the state, which requires stores to sell items at at least 6 percent above cost, many deals offered by Walmarts across the country will not be found in Oklahoma as they would make products illegally inexpensive.

1. Arkansas
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 30.87
> Total No. of Stores: 90
> Median Income: $37,823 (3rd Lowest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 18.8% (2nd Highest)

Walmart has an extraordinary presence in its home state. There are over 30 Walmart stores for every million people in the state, by far the largest ratio in the country. There are more than 48,000 Walmart employees in the state, making up approximately 3.5% of Arkansas’ labor force. Walmart works hard to maintain a positive relationship with the state. According to the company, it donated almost 4,000 tons of food last year to Arkansas residents. The Walton Family Foundation, started by Walmart founders Sam and Helen Walton, recently announced it will be giving $800 million to the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas, which was founded by their daughter Alice. This February, after Walmart was given an award by the National Governors Association, Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe showed his appreciation for the company, saying “Walmart has demonstrated a commitment to philanthropic efforts across the nation, but its efforts here in Arkansas have been particularly generous and noteworthy.”


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Only one state beats Oklahoma on that list regarding the sheer number of Walmart stores. Missouri comes out to 119 Walmart stores.

9. Missouri
> Stores Per 1 Million People: 19.87
> Total No. of Stores: 119
> Median Income: $45,229 (16th Lowest)
> Pct. Living Below The Poverty Line: 14.6% (19th Highest)

Missouri is in much the same situation as Louisiana. Bordering Arkansas, the company’s home state, it makes sense that Walmart would establish a foothold in the state. There are currently 119 Walmart stores in Missouri, a huge number considering the state’s population. Like Louisiana, no stores have been opened in the last year. Regardless of its opportunities for growth, the company remains extremely active in the state. In 2010, Wal-Mart Stores (including Sam’s Club locations) donated more than $21.4 million to local organizations, according to the company.



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Here is another list that puts Oklahoma at number 5 in the number of supercenters (per capita) (most recent) by state


Rank States Amount
# 1 Arkansas: 22.309 per 1 million people
# 2 Mississippi: 18.486 per 1 million people
# 3 Alabama: 16.675 per 1 million people
# 4 Wyoming: 15.708 per 1 million people
# 5 Oklahoma: 15.22 per 1 million people
# 6 West Virginia: 14.861 per 1 million people
# 7 New Mexico: 14.52 per 1 million people
# 8 Tennessee: 14.422 per 1 million people
# 9 Kentucky: 14.377 per 1 million people
# 10 Kansas: 14.209 per 1 million people
# 11 Louisiana: 13.706 per 1 million people
# 12 Missouri: 13.62 per 1 million people
# 13 Iowa: 13.148 per 1 million people
# 14 Nebraska: 13.077 per 1 million people
# 15 South Dakota: 12.888 per 1 million people
# 16 South Carolina: 11.751 per 1 million people
# 17 Georgia: 11.463 per 1 million people
# 18 Texas: 11.33 per 1 million people
# 19 Utah: 10.528 per 1 million people
# 20 Indiana: 10.364 per 1 million people
# 21 Idaho: 9.796 per 1 million people
# 22 Colorado: 9.646 per 1 million people
# 23 North Carolina: 9.213 per 1 million people
# 24 Maine: 9.081 per 1 million people
# 25 Virginia: 8.193 per 1 million people
# 26 Wisconsin: 7.948 per 1 million people
# 27 Montana: 7.481 per 1 million people
# 28 Nevada: 7.454 per 1 million people
# 29 Florida: 7.42 per 1 million people
# 30 Arizona: 7.408 per 1 million people
# 31 Ohio: 7.066 per 1 million people
# 32 North Dakota: 6.283 per 1 million people
# 33 Pennsylvania: 5.712 per 1 million people
# 34 New Hampshire: 5.344 per 1 million people
# 35 Delaware: 4.742 per 1 million people
# 36 Minnesota: 4.676 per 1 million people
# 37 Illinois: 4.074 per 1 million people
# 38 Michigan: 4.051 per 1 million people
# 39 Oregon: 3.296 per 1 million people
# 40 Washington: 3.181 per 1 million people
# 41 New York: 1.922 per 1 million people
# 42 Maryland: 1.428 per 1 million people
# 43 Connecticut: 1.14 per 1 million people
# 44 Rhode Island: 0.929 per 1 million people
# 45 California: 0.47 per 1 million people
# 46 Massachusetts: 0.469 per 1 million people
# 47 New Jersey: 0.115 per 1 million people
= 48 Alaska: 0 per 1 million people
= 48 Hawaii: 0 per 1 million people
= 48 Vermont: 0 per 1 million people

Walmart Stores number of supercenters (per capita) statistics - States compared - StateMaster (http://www.statemaster.com/graph/lif_wal_sto_num_of_sup_percap-stores-number-supercenters-per-capita)

This is interesting


A novelty real estate blog post says the number of cowboy boot stores, country radio stations and Walmarts nearby helped them determine what they call the “10 Most Redneck Cities in America.”

with OKC coming in at number 3 and Tulsa 5


1. Atlanta, Georgia

2. Kansas City, Missouri

3. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

4. Nashville, Tennessee

5. Tulsa, Oklahoma

6. Fort Worth, Texas

7. Arlington, Texas

8. Sacramento, California

9. Cleveland, Ohio

10. Mesa, Arizona

- Blog ranks their ?10 most redneck cities in America? | WQAD.com (http://wqad.com/2013/05/09/blog-ranks-their-10-most-redneck-cities-in-america/)