Once Upon a Time....

This headline on AzCentral says that Bashas is planning to close 10 "stories."  I didn't even know Eddie told stories.

Typos aside, Arizona is a competitive grocery environment and Basha is the only local grocer still standing.  Who knows how many independent local grocers he wiped out on his way to the top.  Now, Wal-Mart and other national chains are wiping Eddie out. 

Basha spoke about the problem to the Arizona Republic in 2004..and compared Wal-Mart to Nazi Germany.

"I call it the economic holocaust," Basha, chief executive of Bashas', the state's largest homegrown supermarket chain, said in an interview with The Arizona Republic. "It's no different than what the Nazis did in World War II. It's a blitzkrieg. They are doing economically what the Nazisdid militaristically."

Sure, no different.  I can see the resemblance now--Germany had boxcars, Wal-Mart has boxcars...

Basha paid no political price for his outrageous comments and the Anti defamation league conceded that they gave him a pass because he's liberal.  Ok, they actually gave him a pass because he's a "champion for justice."

Here's what I wrote at the time.

Comments

[Kurt]

The analysis misses a key point. Bashas' is under a furious attack from the UFCW union because Bashas' has chosen to allow their employees to decide for themselves on whether to be unionized or not. Nasty mail pieces and bogus "community" groups have been formed to attack this centerpiece of Arizona headquartered business. Bottom line...one of Arizona's best home grown company's is under attack from rabid out of state union hacks.

[Dave]

Perhaps could also be that their prices are higher than every other grocery store in town, huh?

[Commander in Chief]

There's that same half gleeful, half spiteful tone to this post that runs through all Mr. Patterson's posts about the failing newspaper industry. Basha's a LIBERAL. Let's cheer when he fails. The same way we cheer when newspapers fail and shut down because they're too liberal.

What about the people who are going to lose their jobs when Basha's closes 10 stores? They're all liberals, too, I suppose, they all deserve to suffer. They can all get jobs selling cheap made in China plastic crap at WalMart, where they'll be paid half as much and lose the health insurance benefits they had at Basha's. They can take their kids to the emergency room when they get sick and send the bills to AHCCCS.

This is something to be gleeful about?

The Republican party took an awful beating in the last two elections. I realize they're still trying to find a voice, find some leadership, find themselves. But is this it? Rooting for failure? Cheering when people lose their jobs because their boss was a liberal?

Is this just the wailing and moaning of a badly defeated political party trying to console itself in some way? Or is it, in fact, the naked ugly truth: Republicans are nasty, mean-spirited, petty, and indifferent to human suffering. They'll celebrate anything that appears, even for a fleeting transitory moment, to vindicate their political philosophy, no matter what the cost in human suffering?

My impression is this: if terrorists successfully attacked our country tomorrow, Patterson and Dick Cheney would be popping the champagne corks and clinking their glasses in delight. "This proves I was right to torture people!" Cheney roars. "It's all Janet's fault! Just wait till I rip her to pieces in my blog for this!" Patterson cries.

Talk about the politics of hate. If your party is NOT made up of mean-spirited, nasty, callous idealogues, it's time to prove it. Stop rooting for failure. Stop celebrating any time anything you associate with any one or any thing that's "liberal" takes a hit.

By the way, Kurt, that's a laugher about Basha's being under attack by the UFCW. Safeway and Fry's, as well as several Smiths and Albertson's is this state are unionized. By the UFCW. Basha's is failing and closing stores now because the UFCW is trying to organize there? Safeway and Fry's are not closing stores because.....? The UFCW's been working on Basha's for at least five years that I know of. Basha's is closing stores NOW because of the UFCW? The recession has nothing to do with it? Whatever you're smoking is stronger that the stuff I used to get back in Udon Thani. And that was some strong stuff, dude. Do a Clinton next time. Do not inhale!

[DGN]

This is one Republican who does NOT want to see Bashas' fail. But I also recognize that Eddie Basha got a pass from the media when he compared Wal-Mart to Nazis. He shouldn't have done it and it is tiresome when those on the left say hideous things and aren't held accountable.

[Travis]

What's Eddie compared to when he runs his businesses as class and race separating entities. Ever seen a Food City in a nice, upper class neighborhood? Ever seen an AJs in a poor neighborhood?

Ever seen a clean surface in a Food City? I haven't.

I've seen Walmarts in the poorest neighborhoods and Walmarts in the best neighborhoods. Both have the same standards for cleanliness and what is stocked.

Everyone knows about the class separation in the Basha's empire. There is a name for this.

[jainphx]

That's called business sense, you can't sell high end groceries to the poor or low end to the middle class. Can't expect a Leftie to know that.

[BobH]

It's demographic segmentation. A well-run business provides what its customers need and/or want. What the customers need/want will differ by area.

Stores in hispanic neighborhood are likely to have larger selections of products appealing to hispanics than stores in other areas. Should that be illegal?

[Sam]

Fine -- different demographics dictate different approaches, i.e. stores and product selection.

But to Travis' point -- why do the AJs look so pristine and clean, while the low-end Bashases and Food Cities look like crap?

[BobH]

If you are selling mostly lower-priced, lower-margin products, you need to keep costs low. One way to do that is to scrimp on maintenance.

Under the best of circumstances, grocery store profit margins are in the single digits (usually in the low singles).

[Travis]

It is well known that Basha makes more money with the Food City stores than the other stores. Sam, you're right about the look of the stores, but even that would not bother me. It is the cleanliness and lack of attention to the stores marketed directly to a specific race. Again, there's a name for this...

[Reagan Republican]

@ Commander in Chief: And the left doesn't have spiteful, callous ideologues? The left never practices the politics of hate? The left never roots for the other side to fail? The left is never unfair toward the other side?

I agree with you that some Republicans (maybe even many Republicans) are unfair, hateful, and mean-spirited, but stop pretending that the left is morally superior. I could write a dissertation chronicling all the hate spewed by the left the last 8 years.

And for the record, this conservative does not want to see Bashas' fail just because of Eddie's politics. But if the business model in groceries favors national chains, Eddie will either be done soon or (more likely) merge with a national retailer like Smitty's did.

[BobH]

"It is well known that Basha makes more money with the Food City stores than the other stores."

Perhaps, though I'd like a reliable source in support of your assertion. If they are making a good profit selling lower-margin products, then they must be doing a very large volume -- which would indicate that customers are willing to accept the trade-offs associated with low-margin stores.

Many people are -- most people find that Target stores are cleaner and more pleasant visually than Walmart. But Walmart does a heckuva lot more volume. Not everybody has the same priorities in their shopping decisions.

[Name:]

Do not hold the low margins against them any more than you think CD's are a worse investment that the stock market. The lower the risk, the lower the return. Grocers will probably always be in business, so their returns are virtually guaranteed.

BobH: Why do lower prices mean lower margins? They don't. You can buy a semi of tomatoes that will be rotten in a few days for pennies a pound. Sell them today and tomorrow for nickels and dimes a pound. Low prices, huge margin. Food City?

[Travis]

BH - "Perhaps, though I'd like a reliable source in support of your assertion. If they are making a good profit selling lower-margin products, then they must be doing a very large volume -- which would indicate that customers are willing to accept the trade-offs associated with low-margin stores."

My source was Johnny Basha - on two occasions. Furthermore, I cannot accept that people willingly prefer insect ridden produce, blood stained meat departments and crusty dairy products. These are not the trade offs for low-margin profits. They are the result of despicable business practices targeted to people who are not likely to complain. Anyone willing to guess the name for this?

[kurt]

keep smokin' that crack Dave...

[unpaintedhuffheinz]

I've given you some link love over on Redstate. Congrats---you've earned it. Good work.

Maybe Basha will wise up now...