NYC: Walmart Launches "Let Us In" Site

Walmart has launched a new website intent on convincing New Yorkers to pressure city leaders to allow the retailing giant a foothold in the nation's largest market. The site is being accompanied by a massive radio campaign.

Many New Yorkers woke up Monday morning to a radio advertisement by Walmart blasting “special interest” groups for pressuring the City Council to derail its efforts to open shop in the city. Turn down new jobs and stop people from paying lower prices to satisfy some special interest?” the 60-second spot asks. “That's everything people hate about politics.” That ad, and a second one that zeroes in more on the retailers' low prices, will run for a week on 14 city radio stations, including WFAN, WCBS and WINS. A print ad that trumpets the results of a recent Walmart-sponsored poll showing 71% of New Yorkers favor the retailer's entry into the city will run in 30 community newspapers, plus the Daily News and New York Post.

Labor unions and many city council members are vehemently opposed to allowing Walmart into town. The company is said to be looking at sites in Queens and Brooklyn. A recent report by NYC Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and Hunter College concluded that three jobs are lost at nearby small stores for every two jobs created by new Walmart locations. Additionally, city and state services are strained by Walmart employees unable to afford insurance.