Stores Returning to Regular Hours

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Alpha8472
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by Alpha8472 »

San Leandro, California where one Walmart was looted and burned down Sunday is lifting the 6 pm curfew as of Thursday. The other Walmart in San Leandro is opening back up Friday and closing supposedly at the regular time of 8:30 pm.

Rumors were that Walmart would go back to regular hours nationwide on June 8. I do not think that is wise. I certainly do not want to be shopping at 11 at night and getting into the middle of a takeover robbery or having looters carjack me in the parking lot. People no longer feel safe after dark. Stores probably will all want to close before sunset.

We will probably see an economic downturn as people will be afraid to leave their houses. Everyone will just buy online. This will be the death of many retail stores.

I drove by the lone San Leandro Walmart that is still standing. It was boarded up, but there were hundreds of protesters in front of the store. Who chose this spot out of all the places in the entire city? The looters probably were waiting for their opportunity to loot the last Walmart left in this area.

I saw many people carrying huge backpacks with what looked like heavy tools, and equipment of some kind. Baseball bats... etc.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by Alpha8472 »

Target seems to have returned to 10 PM closing times in the San Francisco Bay Area. Target stores in the area were all looted and ransacked back at the beginning of June. This led to 9 PM closing times at the remaining stores that are still open. Now things have returned somewhat to normal. The Target stores used to close at midnight or 11 PM before the riots.

However, Walmart still closes at 8:30 PM at most locations. The Richmond, California Walmart had been closing at 5 PM, but just recently went back to 8:30 PM. The 5 PM closing time was due to the threat of looting in the very impoverished city. I do not know if Walmart will dare open later any time soon. After sundown, the shoplifters come in droves. Target seems to bear the brunt of the shoplifters now at night right before closing. Safeway stores seem to close at 11 PM in all areas whether they are busy locations. I do not see any 24 hours locations. The looted and burned Walmart in San Leandro, California will reopen in late September.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by storewanderer »

NorCal Safeway currently has 3 24 hour locations: El Dorado Hills, Kings Beach, and Zephyr Cove.

Smiths up in Reno seems to have gone to 11 PM as its new closing time and is not reverting back to 24 hour operations which is unfortunate.

WinCo went back to 24 hour operation in Reno sometime in the past couple of weeks. No fanfare. Just took all the signs off the door with the reduced store hours. No "now open 24 hours" or anything like that. Of course they have a big illuminated sign out front that says "24 hour savings" but that has been lit up all along.
Alpha8472
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by Alpha8472 »

Walmart is changing from closing at 8:30 PM to 10 PM starting on Monday August 3 in the San Francisco Bay Area. They seem to want to match Target's closing time. The Walmart stores should stay open later. The lines are very long all day long. The crowds are so bad that you cannot stay 6 feet apart. Supposedly the 6 AM Tuesday early senior shopping hour is going away.

Most Winco stores are 24 hours now. There are a few that close at midnight or 11 PM.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by storewanderer »

Wal Mart has walked a TON of sales to other grocery competitors with this 8:30 PM closing time, in addition to over to Target. I cannot believe how busy Safeway, Smiths, Target, and WinCo locations are at 8:30 PM and up until past 10 PM. I guess Wal Mart finally realized they need to stop this and increase their hours again. It will be interesting to see if these grocery customers return to Wal Mart or if they stay at the competitors.

This 8:30 PM closing time may have gone over okay in cold January, but this is summer and people go out later.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by Bagels »

Here in Orange County, I’m betting many stores may “never” return to their normal hours. For example, every Albertsons/Vons/Pavilions now closes at 11PM. Previously, closing times were mixed between 10PM, 11PM, 12AM and 1AM... with some locations open until 2AM. All Ralph’s close at 12AM, when they were previously open until 1AM (two stores that previously closed at 11PM and 12AM now close at 10PM). Target use to be open until 12am on weekends, but now closes at 10pm.

And not SoCal related but I bet that many Walmart’s will never return to 24-hours.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by storewanderer »

A select few NorCal Safeways have returned to 24 hour operations. Very, very few locations. This is promising that maybe they are at least even reverting a few locations back to it, shows they have not given up on the idea.

I don't expect Wal Mart to go back to 24 hour operations again either. It kind of seems like Wal Mart in general would love to cut store hours on an ongoing basis. It is certainly most efficient to stay open hours when you have heavy traffic. Thanks to competition that is still in business with longer hours, notably Target (10 PM), Meijer (Midnight), and the various grocers with an assortment of hours, they can't quite do it yet without losing some business. If Kmart, Shopko, were still around with 10 PM closing times I doubt Wal Mart would have ever even tried the rather unreasonable 8:30 PM closing time.

Smiths seems to be at 11 PM closing across the board.

It looks like a small number of Ralphs did go back to 2 AM around Los Angeles.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by arizonaguy »

storewanderer wrote: July 31st, 2020, 11:32 pm Wal Mart has walked a TON of sales to other grocery competitors with this 8:30 PM closing time, in addition to over to Target. I cannot believe how busy Safeway, Smiths, Target, and WinCo locations are at 8:30 PM and up until past 10 PM. I guess Wal Mart finally realized they need to stop this and increase their hours again. It will be interesting to see if these grocery customers return to Wal Mart or if they stay at the competitors.

This 8:30 PM closing time may have gone over okay in cold January, but this is summer and people go out later.
The Walmarts here in the Phoenix area still all have the 8:30 PM closing time.

8:30 PM closing with 110+ degree weather makes Walmart useless.

The WinCo near my house is 24 hours, Fry's closes at 11, and Safeway, Bashas', and Target close at 10.

I have small children who go to bed around 8 and I shop afterwards. Needless to say, Walmart isn't getting my business.
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by cjd »

What I want to know is why are stores, including Walmart still closing so early? I understand in areas where looting was happening or when it was harder to get stock and there was panic buying earlier in the pandemic. But exactly what are they doing with that extra time now? Just how many touch points do they have to sanitize each day after closing?

I get the feeling these early closures may just not have an end date. And I agree it's summer, surely people aren't going home for good at 8:30-9 PM every night, everywhere in the country.

Or is it more so to limit employees' risk of exposure to the virus?
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Re: Stores Returning to Regular Hours

Post by Alpha8472 »

It was clearly about cutting labor costs. If the store closes early, they need fewer employees. Staying open until 10 PM requires more security, more cashiers, more managers on duty, and more employee work hours. This also means that at night there will be a whole bunch of shoplifting as late at night is when the shoplifters love to come out. Walmart thought that they could close early and let the other stores deal with shoplifters.

They closed down the auto centers, because they were very unprofitable. They require expensive auto workers and create all sorts of insurance liability. No one that I know has ever received timely or satisfactory service at their auto centers. They are nothing but trouble.

I believe that August 3 is when Walmart stores nationwide will expand their hours. The 8:30 closing time will change to 10 PM at most stores. Some may be open later if they are a high volume store in a low crime area.
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