Walmart Essay

The first Wal-Mart Store was opened in 1962 by Sam Walton. This small-town merchant, who had operated a variety of stores in Missouri and Arkansas, was convinced consumers would flock to a discount store with a wide variety of merchandise and friendly service. This company has flourished into the worlds number one retailer. From this the company has reached out into grocery (Wal-Mart Supercenters), international operations, membership warehouse clubs (Sams Club), and deep discount warehouse outlets. These expansions into other types of retail have given the corporation even more room for growth. Wal-Marts financial explosion has also lead to the...

Wal-Mart's philosophy has always been to provide everyday low prices and superior customer service. But this philosophy might have stared potential customers away from Wal-Mart. Many people, including myself, have the misconception that Wal-Mart only sells necessities that the average working class family can afford. An extreme eye opener for me was a recent television commercial by Wal-Mart. I saw that they also sold flat panel televisions, which is considered a luxury item for any social class. After going to their website to see what other luxury items Wal-Mart sold I was amazed at the number of items I found...

Wal-Mart Company Strategy This section will examine Wal-Mart's company strategy in several sections. Three elements of successful strategy formulation and a fourth element, which exemplifies the implementation process of company strategy, will be looked at. Followed by this, an analysis of key factors contributing to this strategy will be detailed. These include looking at Wal-Mart's competitive strategy, the CEO's leadership, and company strategy strengths and weakness assessment. The material used to analyze Wal-Mart strategy consists of the company's annual reports, its Fact Sheets and other information found on the company Internet site. Other information is obtained from outside sources such...

Wal-Mart Current Situation AnalysisMission and Strategic ObjectivesWal - Mart Corporation's mission statement can be identified as follows:Sam Walton built Wal-Mart on the revolutionary philosophies of excellence in the workplace, customer service and always having the lowest prices. We have always stayed true to the Three Basic Beliefs Mr. Sam established in 1962: 1. Respect for the Individual 2. Service to Our Customers 3.Strive for Excellence Wal-Mart is the world's largest retailer, operating more than 5800 discount stores. Wal-Mart employs more than 1. 5 million associates 885,000 in the United States and 225,000 internationally. Walton had a reputation for caring about...

By exploiting core competencies firms can develop value creating strategies which are superior to their competitors. Wal-Mart are experts at using there core competencies to become superior to their competitors. There are three resources which allow a company to create a core competency. Tangible resources consist of assets that can be seen, financial resources (borrowing capacity), physical resources, organizational structure and technology. Wal-Mart is a huge and very powerful company and therefore uses its ability of lending to become a core competency. Intangible resources are characterized by human resources, resource for innovation, and reputation. This category is where Wal-Mart excels...

StrengthsWal-Mart is a powerful retail brand. It has a reputation for value for money, convenience and a wide range of products all in one store. Wal-Mart has grown substantially over recent years, and has experienced global expansion (for example its purchase of the United Kingdom based retailer ASDA). The company has a core competence involving its use of information technology to support its international logistics system. For example, it can see how individual products are performing country-wide, store-by-store at a glance. IT also supports Wal-Mart's efficient procurement. A focused strategy is in place for human resource management and development. People...

Relationship Marketing King Wal-Mart Still No. 1by Doug Edge April 29, 2003 The economists are still telling us how bad the U. S. economy is, but don't say anything about the bad economy to your local Wal-Mart greeter. His or her employer just witnessed revenues grow by 12 percent in 2002, to $246. 5 billion. He or she will probably proudly let you know that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. was just ranked number oneagainby Fortune magazine, leading the top 500 corporations for a second year in a row. How do they do it? Sam Walton's 1992 book Made In America has...

Wal-Mart is a general merchandise discount retailer, which was incorporated in 1962. Wal-Mart’s history is based on one man, Sam Walton, who changed the course of retailing forever. Sam Walton first entered retailing when he was a management trainee at J. C. Penny Co. in 1940 in Des Moines, Iowa. After serving in the Army in World War II, Walton acquired a Ben Franklin variety store franchise with his brother James Walton in Newport Arkansas, until they lost the lease to the store in 1950. By 1962, when the first Wal-Mart Discount City was opened in Rogers Arkansas, both Walton’s...

Definition of Main Problem: There can be no argument that Wal*Mart has revolutionized the discount retailing industry. Furthermore, CEO Glass and COO Soderquist have stepped in at the helm of this company and continued to take it in the right direction by quadrupling sales and profits from 1987 to 1993. The main problem they now face is how to sustain their phenomenal performance, and becoming number one has magnified this issue. No longer can they just sneak into small towns where the only competition is the local merchant’s shop. No longer can they copy larger companies like Sears and J....

Wal-Mart is the World's largest grocery retailer and control of its empire, despite its IT advantages, could leave it weak in some areas due to the huge span of control. Since Wal-Mart sell products across many sectors (such as clothing, food, or stationary), it may not have the flexibility of some of its more focused competitors. The company is global, but has has a presence in relatively few countries Worldwide. OpportunitiesTo take over, merge with, or form strategic alliances with other global retailers, focusing on specific markets such as Europe or the Greater China Region. The stores are currently only...