Why Seattle has become Walmart’s worst enemy

It seems that Walmart stores are dropping as fast as their prices.

According to Forbes contributor Panos Mourdoukoutas, there are three core reasons Walmart is retreating and closing up shops.

Related: Sea-Tac baggage handlers protesting over minimum wage

And what do those three core reasons have in common?

If you guessed Seattle, you are correct.

One by one, Walmart’s stores across the country have been closing &#8212 a total of 154 in the Unites States, and 269 worldwide. That equates to about 10,000 employees being affected by the closings, according to Time.

Mourdoukoutas points to three reasons why Walmart has been closing stores, and they all have connections to Seattle.

• Seattle-based Amazon has changed the nature of the retail market, drawing people online and out of stores. Amazon has been able to carve into Walmart’s profits, making shopping more convenient and cheaper.

• Costco, another Seattle-area company &#8212 headquartered in Issaquah &#8212 also offers a park-and-shop experience for customers, but those customers reside in the more affluent end of the market. That end of the market is bypassing Walmart and walking into Costco instead.

• Minimum wage has been credited with bringing down Walmart’s profit margin. Movements such as Seattle’s 15 Now, which successfully got locals a $15 minimum wage, have been occurring across the country. Not to mention the pressure from Walmart’s own employees to pay them enough so even they can afford to shop at… Walmart.

But KIRO Radio’s Tom and Curly also noted a fourth reason. What’s happening to Walmart now is exactly what the mega-store did in the past to small businesses across the nation that withered in its expanding shadow.

John Curley: You know who ran out the mom-and-pop stores?

Tom Tangney: Walmart. They were the ones that moved in and ran out all the mom-and-pop stores. Walmart was the one that ended up destroying all these small businesses because they could monopolize. Now what Amazon is doing is the same thing to Walmart that Walmart did.

JC: No. You know who ran ma and pa out of business? I’ll tell you who did: the customer. You have a choice between going to Jimmy’s because he makes great steak sandwiches (or another place). And then some Subway shop rolls in, or some Walmart rolls in, and then you’re like, “Yeah, Jimmy is good, but I get better prices.” So what happens is the customer, the person, runs the ma and pa out of business.

TT: Well, exactly. Walmart is going out of business because of the customer, too. I’m just saying we don’t want to sentimentalize Walmart.

JC: I’m not. I’m saying don’t blame it on Walmart. People always go, “I can’t believe Main Street is closing down.” Really?! When is the last time you shopped on Main Street? It’s you. Look in the mirror. You didn’t shop at the little bookstore anymore. Every time you went to buy a book, you went to Amazon for convenience. But then, all of a sudden, when the little bookstore on the corner is gone &#8212 that’s your fault.