Walmart has
practiced the art of creative destruction with great enthusiasm for decades to
the detriment of small town culture.
Perhaps their business model can be adapted to small towns in a manner
that might revive and strengthen the local population, their customers. A Super Walmart has a one story building area
of about 175,000 sf on 25 acres. Most of
the land is used for parking. The Townlet's ground floor area is about 200,000
sf on 11 acres. Can Walmart be deployed
in the Townlet?
Walmart can
organize its 96 retail departments in a bit less space since the main
circulation occurs on the Corso, Via and Square. The General Store accommodates their 24 hour
operation while specialties are spread throughout The Townlet on the ground
floor of several Flexible Use Buildings.
Each Square has its own identity and function that coincides with
Walmart's specialty retail units. Music
Square would be the obvious location for musical instruments, digital media and
devices, Greenhouse Square - garden supplies, Startup Square – office supplies,
books, etc., the Main Corso – clothes, jewelry, etc.
As scholars
point out, the average life of a corporation is 45 years while cities are often
immortal. Walmart was founded in 1962,
so it's 50. The internet and the
reluctance of cities to welcome Walmart are existential challenges that
threaten Walmart's management. The
Walmart Townlet is an idea that merges a company with the immortal city to
enhance the human ecosystem. This may
be a step in Walmart's sustainable future.
I love the idea of townlets!! And the concept makes for really fascinating musings in my mind. And i really am enjoying the blog.
ReplyDeleteTo me it seems like a really wonderful part of the townlet would be a reinvigoration of the connection between the services rendered by the people who actually lived in the townlet, assuming that the ideal would be a community that though not necessarily self sustained, is working towards that.
I don't think Walmart would be a great addition to this. With it's known business practices of paying as little as possible, unequal pay and cheap prices for cheaper goods. Wouldn't independent stores be a more sustainable approach for something like a townlet? Wouldn't even the addition of a Walmart to one be an addition of Walmart to all?
I know I am sounding political for something that is a concept, so I apologize for that, I just am curious about the choice of Walmart because it, in a way, makes the townlet go from something conceptual to actually more of a reality. In that I could see something like that happening in a dystopian future.
katyo
DeleteGreat comments-
I think that Walmart needs to humanize their operation to remain viable. Their creative destruction literally shrinks their customer base. Breaking up the Big Box into a number of Flexible Use Buildings with housing and office uses on the upper floors supports the community, anchors the company to place and is reusable after the Big Box retail culture transitions the Amazon internet. Entrepreneurs can fill the inexpensive space abandoned by Walmart to create the new.
Pienza, Italy is the primary model for the Townlet. Created by a Pope, his Cardinals and nobility in 1459, it is probably more prosperous and more sustainable today than ever. The Pope and nobility are long gone but the jewel remains.
Let me know how you think the Townlet might be improved.
Thanks,
M