 An April 3, 2013 "The New York Times" article cites "Supermarket News" that Walmart's grocery prices are usually about 15 percent cheaper than competitors.At the start of 2007, the company had an average of 338 employees for each Walmart and Sam's Club store in the United States, and by April 2013, this had reduced to an average of 281 employees per store.Terrie Ellerbee, associate editor of grocery publication "The Shelby Report", traced the problem to 2010 when Walmart reduced the number of different merchandise items carried in an attempt to make stores less cluttered.