TRUE !!! Rumor: Wal-mart Getting rid of Lay-a-Way!

[shelbylovesmelby]

I forgot to post this a few weeks ago...

But there is a sign in our local wal-mart stating that this year is the last holiday for Lay-a-way

I imagine they'd rather use the space for other things. BUT they don't charge a fee like K-mart does, wich is why I don't use K-mart's lay-a-way & if I don't have to pay a fee I won't.

Now w/ lay-a-way gone will that change your spending habbits @ Wal-mart??

[pearlieq]

They've been phasing it out for a while. I've never used it so it doesn't matter to me. I guess I can see how it would be helpful for parents who need to hide gifts from kids, but I can't really see how it benefits the store too much.

[PRICEPLUS]

Why layaway when you can make interest by giving credit? What can you do?

I've never used layaway but it seems like a lot of people do looking at the lines in the walmart layaway dept!

[sparkysgirl]

nope, I never shop there, but I do know that this will hurt a lot of single moms i know that used this as a means to pay for Christmas.

[threebeansalad]

Who needs Layaway in a culture of easy credit-- get now-- I'm in denial and will pay for it later?

[smooper]

Ever since paying off all the CC's, We don't buy unless we have the money. I won't miss lay-a-way.

[poundwise]

Anyone who is capable of making regular payments against items in lay-a-way is also capable of making regular savings deposits to save the money and buy the items. Unfortunately, a certain significant-size segment of lay-a-way consumers do not/will not make this correlation and will likely replace their lay-a-way spending with a store credit card.

[tinapbeana]

Originally Posted by poundwise

Anyone who is capable of making regular payments against items in lay-a-way is also capable of making regular savings deposits to save the money and buy the items. Unfortunately, a certain significant-size segment of lay-a-way consumers do not/will not make this correlation and will likely replace their lay-a-way spending with a store credit card.

ironically, most lay-away programs are for 2-3 months TOPS, and these folks would actually have more saved up for the holidays if they saved the first 9 months of the year rather than paying on a lay-away the last 3 months of the year.

with that said, DH is paying on a layaway he setup for golf clubs that were on a really good sale. the house wouldn't pay for it since it wasn't a house expense, and the layaway is coming out of his allowance. you are correct, he could have saved up the money in order to make the purchase, but the sale was an irregular one and there wouldn't really be a way for him to take advantage of it without the layaway program.

taking advantage of sales prices is one big plus of the lay-aways system, in my book. but, the store looses money in the end (no interest plus the cost of storing goods), so why should they bother to maintain a truly customer oriented service when there's no hidden profit in it *wry grin*

[shelbylovesmelby]

Ya I don't like the idea of paying via credit card instead of making payments on things you wanted to purchase for Christmas ect.

I guess you could save the money as another poster said to buy the item. However, if you see something you'd like but don't have the $.... I can tell you 3 mo down the road if you finally saved up the $ the odds are if it's clothing or shoes your size is GONE.

I wonder if they also got rid of the Jewelry Lay-a-way. Not that they have the greatest quality ect but how much room can a ring box take up? *LOL*

[disneysteve]

This is actually old news as Wal-Mart announced it a few months ago. Maintaining the department was costing them a considerable amount of money - space and staffing - and the use of lay-away had steadily declined over the years. It just didn't make sense to keep doing it for a handful of customers. Statistically, only the poorest customers used the service. As others have said, anyone who qualifies for traditional credit is far more likly to charge their purchases in today's world.

I think lay-away is an outdated concept. Other than Wal-Mart and K-Mart, you hardly ever hear of it anymore.

[shelbylovesmelby]

Most jewelry stores still have a lay-a-way program.... so it's not completly dead in the water. Just probably for "big box stores" & lower end merchandise chains.

[tinapbeana]

i like layaway because it's a cross between using a credit card and good old fashioned 'save for it till you've got enough'. a compromise of sorts. if nothing else, it might help some folks realize they could stash $20 out of every paycheck pretty painlessly.

then again, there's no telling how many are making their layaway payments on plastic, so it might no longer be the compromise it once was...

[rob62521]

I think lay-a-way was a good way to save up and get stuff. I heard from a friend who works at our local Wal-Mart that they are encouraging the folks who used the now defunct lay-a-way to get their credit card instead. Guess who will be making bucks on that????

[Ima saver]

I started using layaway about 40 years ago. It was a good way to purchase toys and pay for them over the months. I quit using it when I quit buying toys.

[markio26]

i don't use layaway... but, i have seen lines that were long that utilized it at holiday time....so, i am sure it will be missed by alot of ppl....

[Komelika]

Originally Posted by PRICEPLUS

Why layaway when you can make interest by giving credit? What can you do?

Bingo! "We no longer offer lay-a-way, but here is our credit application... Sucker!" I'm actually amazed that it took this long. K-Mart has been advertising lay-a-way since the announcement and is bound to get more business.