@cstross

It sounds a lot like this incident at a Wal-Mart, except that she also ate most of a rotisserie chicken, oh, and the methamphetamine.

Story mangled in transmission, or is this a standard behaviour in that country?

(www.seattletimes.com)

@cstross And, just for reference, Target (pronounced "targé") is where Walmart shoppers go when they want to feel upscale. If you really want to experience the true depths of despair, go to Ocean State Job Lot, which is stocked with stuff that didn't sell anywhere else. Or was returned. https://www.oceanstatejoblot.com/

@stevendbrewer Hey, this is the UK! We have Tesco here. (WalMart tried to break into the supermarket biz, bought ASDA—the third-ranked chain—and made a big noise. A few years later they ran weeping to the anti-trust people. Then they gave up, sold most of their stake in ASDA, and got out. Retailing in the UK is hardcore!)

@cstross @stevendbrewer Reminds me of Target’s entry to Canada a decade ago where they bought over 100 locations from a failing retailer, renovated them all, and launched without having inventory or pricing under control.

Strange how US retailers keep forgetting that things are different in other countries.

Within 2 years, they were gone.

@david @stevendbrewer The crazy bit is that ASDA *was* competitive, as a major supermarket chain: WalMart couldn't improve on them, and meanwhile Tesco just did Tesco (cue background sound effects of a Roman legion marching past in lockstep)

@cstross @stevendbrewer
Gewurztraminer, or maybe a sweet Hungarian blaufränkisch red.
Don't know if the US has a domestic equivalent- maybe the reason for arrest was ostentatious drinking of a foreign wine?

@cstross @stevendbrewer Walmart took over Woolco here a few decades ago and are still going strong, and have moved into groceries as well. They’re still here, with an awful shopping experience. I generally avoid.

Then there was the Hudson’s Bay Company, founded in 1670, which went out of business last year after a run with American owners who were more interested in real estate games. Killing the oldest company on the continent is an achievement of some kind, I guess.

@cstross @david @stevendbrewer Do you remember Tesco's attempt to enter the US market? "Fresh & Easy" - except it turned out to be neither of those things.

@stevendbrewer @cstross The idea of stuff that was stocked in the US and didn't sell elsewhere has instilled in me the fear of the Endless depths of the cosmos.

@stevendbrewer
I think sake could work with both.
@cstross

@cstross Really, it's Florida, I'm surprised anyone noticed her.

@violanders @cstross Or shōchū?

@retech @cstross She was noticed because she’s not a senior citizen.

@cstross The best way to shop at Target is to know what you want, go in, buy it, and get out. Same for Walmart, but at double time.
Been boycotting both for the last year, or so, and have always avoided Walmart as much as possible.

@cstross https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Target_Canada

We had ‘em, briefly, but nobody went. Though now The Bay is toast, if they tried again, it might be a different story.

@jbenjamint @cstross @david @stevendbrewer Walmart attempted the same in Germany, lasting 10 years from the mid Nineties and burning through a few $bn.
Retail in Europe is really hard.

@david

Pales in comparison to how spectacularly #Walmart failed in #Germany.

The U.S.A. management managed to fall afoul of regulations that were meant to prevent the Stasi from happening again.

They instituted policies of forced smiling at customers, group cheer sessions, and employees required to report any employees who dated other employees.

Reporting on people's personal lives to the authorities is a bit of a no-no in modern Germany.

German upholds rights of Wal-Mart staff

(www.ft.com)

@cstross @stevendbrewer

@jbenjamint @cstross @david @stevendbrewer @jsl

1/ Yeah, that was amusing.

"Hey, let's enter one of the biggest retail shark tanks on the planet without doing any market research! I am sure nothing can go wrong with this plan!

Also, let's make the employees sing corporate songs like we do in the USA. I'm sure the Germans will love that!"

@jbenjamint @cstross @david @stevendbrewer @jsl

2/ Also, telling employees to constantly smile at German customers is a bad idea. Because the reaction of the average German will be:

"Who is this creepy weirdo, and what do they want from me?"

@cstross Are you sure this thing does not exist in Japan? Feels very close to quantum internet pornography…