Focusing here on the "Walmart Didn’t Kill the Small Town" part of the story. I recently purchased some land in one of the rare US towns that does not have a Walmart (or any big box store). In fact, there are no big box stores within 100 miles of this town. It's a town with about 2,500 people, all within the town core, almost no population in the outlying areas. Not enough population to support a box store. The busine…
> I really believe that is the main reason this town is thriving.
Well yeah - Walmart (or any major corporation) is extractive. Profits from your small town will not stay in the small town. But where else will the coffee shop owner invest their profits back into if not their business and community?