A Wal-Mart Supercenter in Monroe, WI—YES or NO

Next week the citizens of Monroe, WI will vote in a non-binding referendum on the building of a supercenter in the SW Wisconsin town of 11,000. I’m not exactly sure why they are having the referendum, other than it is the “cause du jour”. Monroe is wonderfully quaint regional shopping center. Its downtown has some very unique architecture, unique stores, bars and restaurants.

After my talk there last week we went downtown to Baumgartner’s, a local landmark, where I sampled Limburger cheese. It is best to not smell it before eating it. Monroe is the only place in the USA that makes Limburger. Matt Urban, executive director of the Monroe Chamber, explained to me, “Limburger cheese is a niche market and it doesn’t take much cheese to fill up that niche.”

But, I digress. Back to Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart built their first Wisconsin store in Monroe. They’ve been a good corporate citizen. The store they are in is old and they want to expand. Will it impact the downtown area? The local Wal-Mart store manager probably said it best, “We sell M & M’s, and they sell truffles.” Monroe will be much worse off, with retail trade going to other locations if they vote NO to Wal-Mart. I’ll post the results next Wednesday.