Economics With A Face

It is simply amazing that these structures and complex cities were built nearly 2000 years ago. Teotihuacán clearly had an economy that incorporated a good deal of division of labor (although the means might be suspect). Yet despite its greatness in many regards, as we all know, it would eventually collapse for reasons that are still debated today.

Standing atop the Pyramid of the Sun all these thoughts were passing through my head as I also observed today's civilization that was clearly visible from the vantage point. At each entrance to the site there were various small shops. To the southwest there was a large power plant, a starting point for electrical wires and polls that made their way throughout the large valley. Directly to the west lay the center of San Juan, although in any direction you looked houses and businesses could be seen. In spite of all this development there was one structure I was unable to locate, a new Wal-Mart that had drawn quite a bit of international attention just this last year.

"Wal-Mart to Open Near Mexican Pyramids" cried AP headlines last November. It was the ultimate symbol of a corporation intruding on a culture symbol, and not surprisingly this enraged many across the world. But as I noted at the time not everyone thought this was a bad idea.

After the long decent down the face of the pyramid, we jumped in a taxi to take a look at the town and grab some lunch. I asked the driver where the Wal-Mart was located (to be clear it's actually not even a Wal-Mart, it is a Bodega Aurrera, a subsidiary of the firm). It was south of the main square he told me. When I inquired about the protests that surrounded its opening, he confirmed that there was quite a commotion at the time.

"What do you think about it?" Emily asked.

"Truthfully," he replied in passionate Spanish, "I think the protesters are all nuts."

He went on to say how half of the protesters were store owners that didn't want the competition, how the jobs were better at the new store, and that while the protesters wanted the world to believe the store was being built a stone´s throw from the pyramids, nothing could be further from the truth. To get his point across he threw in quite a few expletives that had me and Em laughing in the backseat. By the end of our ride there was no mistaking his point of view: Wal-Mart was a good thing for their small community.

Once we had eaten lunch we set off on foot to take a look at the store ourselves. Passing by various shops selling an assortment of products along the way made it look like other businesses were doing reasonably well. I'm sure that the increased competition hurt, but we were not walking through a ghost town of empty storefronts where thriving businesses once existed.

The Bodega Aurrera was on the outskirts of the business section, nowhere near the pyramids, and in many ways not what I had expected. Not only was it much smaller than the Wal-Marts back home (or even in other parts of Mexico), there were no obvious signs on the building or elsewhere advertising the store's name. Yet I guess there was no need for such direct advertising, as people seemed to know exactly what was inside. Shoppers flooding in and out showed that the business was clearly busy. Em took a picture of the outside of the store in the parking lot, but a security guard quickly asked us to put the camera away. He told us that If we would like, we could ask management for permission, but due to all the negative publicity the store had received we would need their ok first.

Inside it was just like any well run department store or market you could find anywhere in the world. Clothes, beauty products, fresh fruit and vegetables… you name it. I've heard complaints throughout the trip how expensive electronics are in Mexico compared to the U.S. but in this store the prices seemed very comparable. A 5-disc DVD player went for a little over $600 pesos (around $60 USD). Everywhere you looked there seemed to be happy customers filling their shopping carts. We joined in and bought some basic supplies we needed for the trip.

I talked with a few employees about the store but for the most part they seemed to be tight lipped and downplayed any tension between the local business community and the location near the pyramids. Yes, they said, there were some protests at first but everyone seemed to like the store now. It seemed they had orders to keep quiet about all these issues so I just went about finishing my shopping.

We caught a taxi back to the pyramids and were soon heading back to Mexico City on the bus. We actually passed the Wal-Mart on the way out and it was ironic to see a large hotel right next to the store. It was painted a similar color and was a similar size but I don´t remember reading an uproar around the world about hotel corporations invading this sacred land. Wonder why?

Back in the city we stopped by an internet café to check email before heading back to our room. Quite appropriately Radley had this post on a new Wal-Mart that went up yesterday in Oakland:

August 26, 2005
WalMart Comes to Oakland
And Oakland rejoices.
11,000 people applied for the 400 available positions, and shoppers swarmed the store on its opening day. The store received no city subsidies, and still pays its employees an average above the city's (moronic) "living wage" law, even though it isn't required to.
It wasn't without a fight. Only one member of the Oakland city council attended the opening-day festivities. Others fought to keep the store ought, including passing an ordinance prohibiting retail stores of more than 200,000 square feet from opening shop in the city. That ordinance basically meant WalMart couldn't open one of its "superstores." WalMart Superstores also host a grocery store, with fresh produce at low prices. Keep the Oakland city council's ordinance in mind the next time some leftist public health activist complains about how urban populations don't have access to fresh fruit and vegetables.