ST. MARY'S, Ga. — More than a "wait and see" stance, the $75 million United First Federal Credit Union is now thinking of closing its lone Wal-Mart branch in light of the giant retailer's "Money Center" launch, the CU's president/CEO said today.
"I've sent my marketing head out to check with the store manager here to see what they know since Wal-Mart never told us a thing," said Pat Conn, head of United First, located in far southeast Georgia.
Wal-Mart officials said last week Atlanta would be a testing ground for the Money Center check cashing/money center outlets with 15 new ones opened by yearend in Georgia out of 1,000 planned nationwide by the end of 2008.
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"Our original hope was this would be a giant billboard for us and it has been but it has mainly turned into a transaction center with no loan activity," said Conn. So if Wal-Mart decides to open a Money Center in St. Mary's, United First would see about negotiating out of the lease, now in its fourth year on a renewal.
Including the Wal-Mart facility, United First has six branches and 17,500 members.
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