Big Box Stores

"Can Wal-Mart Get Any Bigger? (Yes, a lot bigger... Here's how)" by Bill Saporito is an article that I read and here is the summary. Wal-mart has extended to other countries like China, Brazil, Germany, and Mexico. Wal-mart is the largest retailer in the world and just keeps gaining market or in other words expanding. Wal-mart sells just about everything from PC’s, ceiling fans, fashionable clothing, to gasoline, even cars. The goal is to have a 30% share of every major business Wal-mart is in. The company has super centers that have products that range from hardware products, to groceries and also over the counter drugs. The centers can get up to 180,000 square ft. in size. The long term strategy of Wal-mart is “To be where we are not”, in more blunt terms to consume and produce everything possible. The company plans to fatten profits by becoming more of a producer and even designer of its goods, especially clothing. Wal-mart has spread a disease of grieve among small hometown businesses and to some of history’s biggest retailers (i.e. Sears). It is important to the company to keep it simple. Keep the right products in stock and maintain a smooth checkout system. They call it “Take the money”, what is the point of low prices if the consumer cannot pay for their items quickly. Wal-mart has pushed responsibility and information to the lowest ranks. Wal-mart is all about NONUNION labor. The average wage at Wal-mart nationally is less than 10$ an hour before bonuses. The most frequent complaint made by Wal-mart employees is low wages and morale-killing store managers. Wal-mart was found guilty of requiring associates to work unpaid overtime. A refute to that argument was that Wal-mart offers health care and ample opportunities for advancement. Two-thirds of its managers come from the ranks of store associates. Wal-mart expects not only to save money on the buy of products but also cut down on inventory by speeding up the supply lines. Wal-mart makes factories in countries and in doing so is to be held more responsible for their factories social and environmental policies. Wal-mart gets 6 billion $ worth of goods from China. Their expansion has gone well in Mexico. Wal-mart has stumbled badly in some other countries like Germany. Lastly this article talks about a Wal-mart store in China that introduced the Walton Institute, a program to teach local managers the master’s Three Basic Beliefs: 1. Respect for individual, service to our customers, and strive for excellence. 2. The 10 foot rule (service for customers within 10 ft. of you). 3. The Sun Down Rule (any employee or customer request must be addressed before sundown. I can use this article to both help form my agruement that "big box" retailers present a threat to American communities that should be curtailed and this artcle can help me establish a good refute to my counter-agruement.