New Yorkers want Walmart; already got Target

Walmart's efforts to open in New York City were helped last week when a new poll, released Friday, found that New Yorkers would shop at Walmart if one opened in the city. No kidding? Target is already there and New Yorkers love Target, so it stands to reason they will love Walmart too even though the companies offer a slightly different value proposition and Walmart comes with a lot more baggage.

The poll was conducted by Quinnipiac University and found 68% of New Yorkers said that if it were convenient for them, they would shop at Walmart. Another 29% said they would not. Nearly identical numbers of people say the chain's lower prices would eat into small business sales. Of those surveyed, 57% said they think elected officials should allow Walmart to move into the city, while 36% do not. The survey consisted of about 1,100 registered voters and was conducted March 8 to 14 and with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points.