Been to Walmart lately and wondered if something is wrong?  This week the retail giant announced thousands of layoffs.

Then along came the Internet and something called Amazon

Locally we’ve seen 24-hour service come to an end.

Twenty years ago Walmart was expected to conquer the planet.  Then along came the Internet and something called Amazon.  Some things I’ve noticed when past stores have neared the end.  The stocking of shelves is suddenly no longer a priority.  In the middle 1990s I worked nights and weekends for a regional department store chain.  As the company started wobbling deliveries wobbled too.

Walmart has a vaunted computer inventory system.  When a very specific flavor of cat food is a big seller more of the canned salmon or ocean white fish is shipped than of the turkey or chicken.

When I mentioned my disappointment about a hole on the shelf I got wry smiles from associates.  Some things aren’t any longer priorities in the supply chain.  Staff must know what’s coming as the stores try and survive during the transition to online retailing.  The lesson here is nothing lasts forever.