FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For media inquiries, please contact: Lauren Gellatly, Small Business Rising coalition coordinator
“When the biggest Big Box stores like Walmart flex their monopoly power to extract these benefits from suppliers, independent small businesses and consumers incur the brunt of the damage. We all lose, save for Walmart executives and shareholders.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. (January 21, 2025) — More than one dozen groups in the Small Business Rising coalition released the following statement, applauding the Federal Trade Commission’s lawsuit targeting PepsiCo. for providing unfair pricing advantages to “a large, big box retailer,” reportedly Walmart according to multiple media sources.
“On behalf of the more than 325,000 American small businesses represented in the Small Business Rising coalition, we applaud the Federal Trade Commission for taking action on price discrimination with the antitrust lawsuit against PepsiCo, alleging violations of the Robinson-Patman Act by providing pricing advantages to “one customer—a large, big box retailer” — reportedly Walmart.
“Our collective goal is simple — fair markets supported by fair enforcement for the good of all. Independent grocers serve a crucial role in providing fresh and healthy food options in communities large and small, urban and rural. Independent grocers are often the only providers of fresh food in many rural communities. When an independent grocer in Claxton, Georgia or Pine Ridge, South Dakota cannot get the same deal on the same truckload of goods as a big box retailer, that’s illegal price discrimination. The results are inflated grocery prices, proliferation of food desserts, loss of consumer choice, shuttered businesses, resulting in today’s highly concentrated grocery sector.
“Walmart captures $1 in every $4 Americans spend on groceries. When the biggest Big Box stores like Walmart flex their monopoly power to extract these benefits from suppliers, independent small businesses and consumers incur the brunt of the damage. We all lose, save for Walmart executives and shareholders.
“Price discrimination favoring large corporations negatively impacts nearly every retail industry represented in our coalition — from grocery to pharmacy to toy stores. We applaud the FTC for reinvigorating this statute and beginning the hard work of repairing our concentrated retail markets so that we, as small businesses, can continue to provide jobs, contribute to our local tax base, provide choice in the market, and serve our communities.”
Signed,
American Booksellers Association
American Independent Business Alliance
American Specialty Toy Retailing Assoc (Astra)
Cambridge Local First
Independent Shopkeepers Association
Institute for Local Self-Reliance
Local Business Institute
Local First Arizona
Local Return
Lowcountry Local First
New Atlantic Independent Booksellers Association
Provender Alliance
Slow Flowers Society
Small Business Majority
Workplace Solutions Association
Photo source: Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0. Wikimedia
