The Grand Illusion
Sometimes, shopping at Walmart can tell you far more about how life is changing in the United States than all the polls and surveys. Why do I use Walmart? Because the prices on staples are far lower than the other three markets in Cedar City, and since Cedar City is on I-15 – the most direct route to California – the produce is not only better, but far less expensive.
Because my wife the professor works long hours on a regular basis, and I can shop when it’s not crowded, I do almost all the grocery shopping, usually once or twice a week. On my last trip, I had two items on my list that I only need to replenish once or twice a year, if that – black boot/shoe polish and black edge-dressing or scuffcoat.
Except this time, Walmart had neither. And it wasn’t that they were out of stock. That whole small shoe section had been reduced to one shelf, with neutral polish and other items having nothing to do with polish, surrounded by insoles for all sizes of feet.
Perhaps it’s my upbringing, or possibly the years in the Navy, but I’ve always liked my boots to be polished. And I wear boots because almost any kind of shoes, even expensive designer shoes or high-end athletic shoes, get painful within hours, if not a few minutes. Except for my work boots, scuffed and dirty boots or shoes, to me at least, suggest a certain slovenliness or lack of character. It’s not that I particularly enjoy polishing boots, but that I dislike appearing unkempt or sloppy (except when engaged in manual labor, where I can quickly get unkempt).
As I was pondering the lack of shoe polish, I realized another fact – that the local cobbler had closed his shop a month previous, and there was no one repairing or resoling shoes or boots in Cedar City any longer. I’ve had some of my boots more than ten years, and I’m hard on them. So I’ve needed new soles and heels on a continuing basis, but getting them repaired is obviously coming to an end.
So, I suspect, are the days of polished leather boots and shoes, replaced by the ubiquitous sneakers or extraordinarily expensive athletic shoes that wear out quickly, none of which are designed to fit my clearly Neanderthal feet.
And it’s not just me. For years, my wife has bemoaned the fact that it’s almost impossible for her to find shoes that fit, ever since shoe manufacturers simplified their sizing. If a woman has a moderate forefoot and a narrow heel, she’ll end up slipping out of a standard shoe (although some manufacturers supply pads), and any shoe narrow enough to fit her heel will be too tight to accommodate her forefoot.
Yes, the times are definitely changing, from head to foot, especially for feet.
Military inspections….I hope you still polish under the boot in the instep.
Actually… I do.
I live in western MD now. There are a large number of Mennonites in this area so you can still find cobblers, butchers, bakers and knife sharpeners you can see a decline in in numbers.
The mennonite farm stand I buy my dairy products from has a good quality product, but they only have a few flavors of ice cream due to capacity limits of their equipment. It’s a trade off I’m willing to deal with.
Convenience, cost and speed have killed off so many skilled trades outside of groups like Mennonites and Amish.
LEM, only now you lost your shoe polish supply from your local Walmart? We used to live in the Indianapolis area and the local Walmart on the west side never had that shoe polish stand stocked right – at least for the last 10 years. I have managed to find polish at shoe retailers though. Yes, sad.
I’ve noticed the reduced shoe maintenance selection too, but also unrelated items: Ayr nasal gel (not the spray) used to be in-store, but now only online, although the big chain drug stores may still have it, at a much higher price. Walmart used to have a store brand canned (small cans) carbonated strawberry juice drink (no added sugar), no more. Various other odd items are missing. Walmart used to have a few dress shirts (not the best, but good enough for short notice) and ties (including solid black ties for unfortunate occasions that might require them). Haven’t seen those at least since COVID, either.
Also a few more I’ve forgotten. Some of it may be low sales, some supply chain issues (still not back to pre-2020 condition, as can be observed by odd items missing from a variety of stores), some the noted tendency toward informal clothing and throwaway goods, etc. Possibly also increased losses due to theft. And work from home where possible during the pandemic probably drove informality further, as well as causing people to question how much they wanted renumeration vs time for other things.
And some is the economy. Whether or not inflation is actually high, if people think it is, lower priced goods tend to replace higher quality goods. I remember that from the Carter years, snacks in a PX snack bar (in Japan) were more the common cheap brands and less the then-better ones like Cadbury.
For non-consumables, cheaper often isn’t cheaper, requiring more replacements. But if people feel pressed, their choices are a matter of what’s immediately needed, not long-term value.
A stronger economy would restore that part of once-normalcy that isn’t due to permanent behavioral changes.