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Walmart Announces Jobs, $400M for South Carolina

By The Associated Press , Posted May 5th 2011 @ 8:25AM

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Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

walmart jobs MEG KINNARD

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced Wednesday that the discount retailer was bringing 4,000 new jobs to South Carolina, an investment of $400 million in the state over the next five years.

"We believe South Carolina is a great place for us to invest and a great place to grow," company CEO Bill Simon said at a news conference alongside Gov. Nikki Haley.

The announcement comes one week after another retail giant abandoned plans to build a distribution center in Lexington County, near Columbia. Last week, Amazon.com withdrew its plans for 1,250 full-time jobs and $100 million in investment after state lawmakers rejected efforts to give the Seattle-based company a break from collecting sales taxes.

The company had sought a five-year exemption from collecting sales taxes from South Carolina shoppers under a deal brokered with the Commerce Department under former Gov. Mark Sanford.

Haley, also a Republican, opposed the break, as did tea party activists and a coalition of retailers that Wal-Mart helped organize, and which bought TV ads railing against it. They argued a tax break was unfair to local retailers that must collect state sales taxes.

Haley said Wal-Mart's plans had been in the works for months and had nothing to do with Amazon's withdrawal.

"We want Amazon in this state, but we want to keep a competitive playing field," said Haley, adding that state officials were still in communication with Amazon.

Amazon vice president Paul Misener said last week he did not expect negotiations with state officials to resume.

Over the next five years, Wal-Mart plans to open at least a dozen new stores throughout South Carolina, as well as relocate and expand other existing stores, company spokesman Daniel Morales said. Stores in Fort Mill and Bennettsville are expected to open in mid-2012, existing stores on James Island and Hilton Head Island are expanding, and stores are relocating in Easley and Lake City, Morales said.

The company's planned investment brings Wal-Mart's total number of jobs in South Carolina to approximately 32,000. There are no plans to expand the Bentonville, Ark.-based company's distribution center near Greenville, Morales said.

"We want the new companies, but it is a treasure to look at the companies that we already have and say, what do we need to do to make them better?" Haley asked.

Morales said Wal-Mart sought no special tax incentives or deals as part of its commitment.

"We're not looking for anything like that," he said. "We're not getting any special carve-outs."

South Carolina's unemployment rate dropped below 10 percent for the first time in more than two years in March, measuring 9.9 percent. At the time, Haley - who took office in January - took some credit for the improved numbers, saying she was on the phone daily with businesses, encouraging them to locate in South Carolina or to expand their operations here.

Frank Knapp, chief executive of the South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce, said that small business owners wondering how to compete in areas where the retail giant is expanding need to remind their consumers of perks they can offer that bigger stores perhaps cannot.

"Small businesses have to learn how to compete with them on other things," Knapp said. "It's either service, convenience, something that the small business can do that maybe the big box store cannot. ... Now they have to either die or get creative and come up with another reason why people should shop with them."


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carola500

These greedy people won't stop till we stop shopping in their stores. Low wages, no health ins. and "fear management" is how Walmart runs its business.

May 06 2011 at 9:19 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
campbe2797

Way to go ChinaMart!

May 05 2011 at 7:43 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
silkylady70

BUY USA

May 05 2011 at 6:54 PM Report abuse +1 rate up rate down Reply
rwallerfam5

Frank Knapp's ending comments is a crystal clear snap shot of all that is wrong with this country. It is now all about the Greater Greed not Greater Good. They devide us and get us to fight against each other. They get you to resent your neighbor's success, no matter the form. They do this because if we payed attention to them and the multi hundreds of millions they make each year that we all might begin to figure out that it is the Wal-marts and the Wall Streets and the insurance companies and too many more to mention that are steeling our country blind. The greatest and fastest transfer of wealth since the railroad land grab has taken place over the past 30 years. In 1980 the middle class controlled 28% of the nations wealth and the working poor 6%. Now the middle class controls just 6% and the working poor .06%. It has nothing at all to do with teacher's pensions or student acheivement or state employees. It has everything to do with greed ******* the life blood out of our country. But what the hell, it is just the neighborhood grocery store that has served the community for years and years, in good times and bad. It is just the neighborhood pharmacy where for countess years nothing but kindess, counsel and personal caring happens. For them in this new day of greed, the thanks they get for aspiring to the "American dream" is a transparently greedy thank you, "die or get creative". Enough said.

May 05 2011 at 6:51 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
CELL PHONE KING

Walmart pushes it's vendors to wholesale walmart their items so cheap, safety and quality control is often being over looked.

Off the top of my head, walmart has had recalled dog food, soup, and vegetables as far as i know, this is within the last year too.

May 05 2011 at 6:36 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
CELL PHONE KING

Cool, walmart will open and drive out the family owned and local businesses. Then hire 4,000 people at minimum wage, they won't even be able to shop at walmart..
Not to mention they might even be illegals, like they have hired before.

S.Walton is turning over in his grave, due to his spoiled snobby kids.

May 05 2011 at 6:34 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
davidsonjet

We all shop at walmart right through the goverment. 2 BILLION DOLLARS will be taken to conduct what we call an ELECTION soon. All it will be is a big travel, eating , drinking and talking about all the things they came solve BUT the money HAS all been promised to others for 10, 20, 30 years out!!! My Goverment needs walmat (hahaha) Goverment is nothing more than any occupation and nobody likes to lose their job.

May 05 2011 at 6:26 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
davefromfwb1

The difference between Amazon and Walmart is that Amazons pay was would probably be higher and healthcare benefits paid for....while walmart pays its workers poverty level wages and forces the state to pick up the healthcare cost through the states welfare system. In the end....walmart is a cancer on any states treasury.

May 05 2011 at 5:20 PM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to davefromfwb1's comment
rwallerfam5

Very well said!

May 05 2011 at 6:54 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
cacheit

Why? Because it's a right to work state, and the employees can then be paid low wages, and Walmart can make huge profits.

May 05 2011 at 5:02 PM Report abuse +2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to cacheit's comment
Patricia

You are absolutely right , in S.C. they can fire you if they don't like your hair color , been there done that !!!!!!!

May 05 2011 at 5:11 PM Report abuse +4 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Patricia's comment
ELZA

BUT THE UNIONS WILL REALLY SCREW UP THE EMPLOYEES......ONES THAT SHOULD BE FIRED CANT BE DUE TO THE UNIONS........UNIONS NEVER...AND IF YOU WANTED TO KEEP YOUR JOB THEN CHANGE YOUR HAIR COLOR, BET MOST PEOPLE WHO SAW YOU DIDNT LIKE THE COLOR EITHER

May 05 2011 at 7:20 PM Report abuse rate up rate down
Warren D

It's funny -ppl love to bash Wal-Mart for doing exactly what our system is set up to do - Be the best at what you do.If small stores can't compete, then maybe their time is up, as with all things.You complain about the items Wal-Mart sells, yet your buying has made Wal-Mart the retail behemoth it is.And if Americans made anything worth buying anymore, maybe Wal-Mart wouldn't use foreign sources!But Americans don't - they'd rather sit around and moan about China and Japan. Pitiful.

May 05 2011 at 4:24 PM Report abuse -2 rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Warren D's comment
muchui

Looks like you're a follower of Ayn Rand's narcissistic philosophy. It's true that many Americans voted in politicians who supported NAFTA or didn't even bother to vote. However, I and millions of others didn't support it, and we don't deserve what it's doing to America.

May 05 2011 at 6:54 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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