Monster Jam trucks including Superman, Safe Auto Minimizer, War Wagon, Freedom Force, Martial Law, and Instigator. Subject to change without notice.
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topic from " http://www.fox19.com/Global/story.asp?S=7844451&nav=menu63_7_6 "
Takeshi Suzuki, senior managing director of Toyota Motor Corp., announces quarterly business results in Tokyo Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008. Toyota reported a 7.5 percent increase in the October-December quarter from the previous year as booming sales in China, Europe, Africa and South America offset declining U.S. sales and a stronger yen. (AP Photo/Katsumi Kasahara) (Katsumi Kasahara - AP)
By YURI KAGEYAMA
The Associated Press Tuesday, February 5, 2008; 9:20 PM
TOKYO -- Sales growth in China and other emerging markets offset a decline in North America to help push Toyota's profit up 7.5 percent for its third fiscal quarter.
The maker of Prius gas-electric hybrids, Camry sedans, Corolla subcompacts and Lexus luxury cars has been flourishing as soaring gas prices boost the appeal of the Prius and other smaller models reputed for fuel efficiency.
Toyota Motor Corp., which narrowly trailed U.S. automaker General Motors Corp. for the top spot in 2007 global vehicle sales, said Tuesday it sold 2.281 million vehicles in the October-December quarter, up 5.8 percent from a year ago.
Its sales growth in emerging markets, including China, Africa and South America, as well as in Europe, more than made up for declines in North America, where sales fell 8,000 vehicles from a year earlier to 756,000 vehicles.
"We posted our highest ever quarterly results for the third quarter in both revenues and profits, despite the severe business environment," said Toyota Senior Managing Director Takeshi Suzuki.
Toyota's group profit for the quarter ended Dec. 31 rose to 458.6 billion yen ($4.29 billion) from 426.7 billion yen the same period the previous year. Quarterly sales rose 9.2 percent to 6.710 trillion yen ($62.79 billion).
Robust sales also made up for the 20 billion yen ($187.1 million) the carmaker lost from the effects of an unfavorable exchange rate. Toyota said the dollar cost about 113 yen during the third fiscal quarter, down from 118 yen in the same period a year ago.
A weak dollar erodes the value of overseas earnings for Japanese companies like Toyota, and the dollar's further decline in recent months possibly puts more pressure on Toyota in the year ahead.
But the company reaffirmed its sales forecast for the year ending March 31 unchanged at 8.93 million vehicles, up 4.8 percent from the previous year.
Toyota also kept its profit projection of 1.7 trillion yen ($15.91 billion) for the fiscal year on 25.5 trillion yen ($238.61 billion) in sales.
Worries are growing about U.S. sales amid a credit crunch, volatile stock markets and drooping consumer spending. Like other Japanese automakers, Toyota appears to be making up with robust growth in new markets, including China, Africa and Asia outside Japan.
So far, Japanese automakers have been faring better financially than their American counterparts. Japanese models with their reputation for good mileage have gotten a lift from soaring gas prices.
Profit at Nissan Motor Co. for the fiscal third quarter jumped 26.6 percent jump to 132.22 billion yen ($1.24 billion) as sales surged 18.2 percent.
Honda Motor Co., Japan's second-biggest automaker, reported a 38.1 percent jump in profit for the October-December quarter to 200 billion yen ($1.87 billion).
On Tuesday, Mitsubishi Motors Corp. reported a profit of 21.7 billion yen ($203 million) for the April-December period in contrast to a loss of 11.8 billion yen for the same period the previous year. Nine-month sales rose 26 percent to 1.95 trillion yen ($18.25 billion). It didn't report third-quarter results.
On the other hand, Ford Motor Co. lost $2.8 billion in the October-December quarter, and offered buyouts to its 54,000 U.S. hourly workers, made salary cuts and trimmed production.
General Motors, which reports earnings next week, barely retained its crown as the world's No. 1 automaker last year, selling some 3,000 more vehicles than Toyota did.
Toyota sold 9.366 million vehicles in 2007 globally, while Detroit-based GM sold 9,369,524 vehicles. GM has been the world's top seller for 77 years.
For the first nine months of its fiscal year, Toyota's profit surged 16.4 percent to 1.401 trillion yen ($13.11 billion). Sales for the period climbed 11.9 percent to 19.722 trillion yen ($184.54 billion).
Toyota shares slid 2 percent to 5,780 yen ($54) in Tokyo on Tuesday. Earnings were announced after trading ended.
Dell is revamping its services and storage efforts as it continues its quest to be seen as more than just a computer maker.
After completing the acquisition of storage area networking company EqualLogic, Dell has wasted no time in integrating the line into its storage portfolio. Best known for its iSCSI technology, EqualLogic’s products will become Dell’s PS 5000 series and help Dell drive into mid-sized businesses. Dell will offer the former EqualLogic products both directly and through resellers.
“No-one is saying one will replace the other but iSCSI presents great opportunities [compared to Fibre Channel],” said Simon Negus, vice president of services. “It’s a simplification technology and iSCSI and server virtualisation are joined at the hip; sixty-nine per cent of iSCSI early adopters are also using server virtualisation.”
Dell also cited Clipper Group research suggesting iSCSI connections will surpass Fibre Channel links in 2009. Burgeoning email attachments, increased use of multimedia and corporate governance demands are making storage more central to IT strategies.
“There’s a multiplier effect,” said Forrester Research analyst Andrew Reichman. “The more you’re storing, the more the cost of wasting storage and the greater the potential risk.”
Separately, Dell said it is simplifying its services tariffs with global specifications and shorter rosters of options for both IT helpdesks and individual remote users.
“We found our model was overly complex and made it quite difficult for users to find what service was best for them in a particular geography,” said Craig Routledge, Dell services director. “It became clear that the fragmented support model was too complex.”
Dell chief executive Michael Dell was once dismissive of companies that built large services wings but now his company sees the area as a profit centre. Routledge added that Dell plans to grow in services by exploiting acquisitions such as asset management company ASAP Software, remote service outfit Silverback Technologies and application delivery firm ACS.
This morning, Pitbull spoke with Big Boy's Neighborhood, a Los Angeles based morning radio show on KPWR 105.9. The rapper spoke on a variety of topics including his latest album, tour and the Superbowl. But, he also spent some time venting about his label issue.
During the broadcast, Pitbull told fans not to buy his album anymore. "Download it. Burn it," he told the Neighborhood. This statement came due to label drama that he spoke about. In a small tirade, he bashed TVT Records for lack of promotion.
"They didn't promote Lil Jon. They didn't promote Ying Yang," he added, noting that he's had to "go out of pocket" for his own promotion. With a hint of optimism, he claimed this was a learning experience that he appreciated for making him "bullet proof." "It's like Music Industry 101."
Pit also spoke on how he's ready to move away from TVT with the next album and gave advice to other emcees.
"We don't need rappers to go at each other. We got to go at these companies. That's what I'm doing."
Later, he added that he's on his way to Atlanta, Georgia to film the finale of a video for "The Anthem" which has already been filmed in pieces throughout Miami and other parts of the world. He's on tour with Baby Bash and he's already thinking about his next LP.
topic from " http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.6331/title.pitbull-tells-fans-to-not-buy-his-album "
Paypal launches new bank withdrawal features for Filipinos By Erwin Oliva INQUIRER.net First Posted 18:21:00 01/29/2008
MANILA, Philippines -- Paypal has announced new bank withdrawal features to Philippines-based users, an eBay.ph customer announcement said.
Paypal is a service that allows payments and money transfers through the Internet. It is emerging as an alternative way to traditional means of payment such as checks and money order. It is currently used to process payments for online vendors and auction sites like eBay. This e-commerce service in turn charges a fee.
In an announcement sent to its eBay.ph customers, Paypal now allows both Philippines-based users of the service to withdraw their Paypal earnings from a list of banks.
A list of banks where Philippines-based users can withdraw their Paypal money is available online.
This withdrawal service is available through the profile page of Paypal users in the Philippines.
Local users are asked to provide the 9-digit bank code, account name and account number. Then they are required to follow online instructions in transferring their Paypal money to the designated bank.
Withdrawals amounting to P7,000 or more will have no transactional fees. A P50 fee is charged for withdrawals below P7,000.
To take advantage of the online service, Paypal requires that members should be verified. The verification process will take three to four business days. It also takes five to seven days for money transferred from PayPal to become available in a local bank, eBay.ph said.
topic from : "http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/infotech/view/20080129-115562/Paypal-launches-new-bank-withdrawal-features-for-Filipinos "
Wal-Mart Announces States that Take the Lead in 'Football Food' Purchases
Retailer's Game Time Playbook Reveals Unbeatable Savings for Customers this Season
January 28, 2008: 11:01 AM EST
BENTONVILLE, Ark., Jan. 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- With the biggest game of the season only one week away, Wal-Mart today released its list of states that purchase the most "football food." Determined by the number of purchases at Wal-Mart, these states have the edge when it comes to wings, pizza pies, chips, dips and snacks. Here's the scoreboard:
# 1: Utah and Louisiana -- lead the way in sales of both breaded and unbreaded chicken wings # 2: Nebraska and South Dakota -- ahead of the pack when it comes to frozen pizza pies # 3: New Mexico and Virginia -- prevail in the potato chip category # 4: Kentucky and Louisiana -- the dynamo in dip sales # 5: South Dakota and Indiana -- the superstars of the snack mixes # 6: North and South Dakota -- cheer for the mixed nuts
Whether customers are throwing a party for four or a party for 40, Wal-Mart has the game time playbook to help them plan their big game get-togethers. At Walmart.com/gametime, customers can create interactive shopping lists based on the amount of guests they plan to host, find delicious recipes and get advice on how to best prepare for a party that everyone will root for. The Web site also features the interactive game, "Time Out," which is a great way for football fans and party-goers alike to warm up before kickoff.
From flatscreen HDTVs and snack foods to decor and team licensed merchandise, Wal-Mart has all the essentials to celebrate the biggest game of the year. Aisles marked "Game Time" in all of its stores will lead shoppers to select items, including:
-- 42-inch Vizio HDTV for under $950* -- 12 oz. Tostitos Scoops or 15.5 oz. Tostitos dip assortment -- two for $5* -- Team jerseys from $24.83 (http://www.walmart.com)* -- 150-count Hefty 9" plates for $3.97* * Prices may vary by state and are available while supplies last.
About Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
Every week, millions of customers visit Wal-Mart Stores, Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets, and Sam's Club locations across America or log on to its online store at http://www.walmart.com. The company and its Foundation are committed to a philosophy of giving back locally. Wal-Mart is proud to support the causes that are important to customers and associates right in their own neighborhoods, and last year gave more than $270 million to local communities in the United States. To learn more, visit http://www.walmartfacts.com, http://www.walmartstores.com, or http://www.walmartfoundation.org.
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) is an Americanpublic corporation that runs a chain of large, discount department stores. It is the world's largest public corporation by revenue, according to the 2007 Fortune Global 500.[3] It was founded by Sam Walton in 1962, incorporated on October 31, 1969, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1972. It is the largest private employer in the world and the fourth largest utility or commercial employer, trailing the Chinese army, the British National Health Service, and the Indian Railways. Wal-Mart is the largest groceryretailer in the United States, with an estimated 20% of the retail grocery and consumables business, as well as the largest toy seller in the U.S., with an estimated 22% share of the toy market.
Wal-Mart operates in Mexico as Walmex, in the UK as ASDA, and in Japan as Seiyu. It has wholly-owned operations in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the UK. Wal-Mart's investments outside North America have produced mixed results. The company's operations in South America and China are highly successful, but it sold its retail operations in South Korea and Germany in 2006 due to sustained losses.
Wal-Mart has been criticized by some community groups, women's rights groups, grassroots organizations, and labor unions, specifically for its extensive foreign product sourcing, low rates of employee health insurance enrollment, resistance to union representation, and alleged sexism.
Walton could neither come to agreement on the existing store's lease renewal nor find a new location in Newport. Instead, he opened a new Ben Franklin franchise in Bentonville, Arkansas, but called it "Walton's Five and Dime." There, Walton achieved higher sales volume by selling products with slightly smaller markups than most competitors.
On July 2, 1962, Walton opened the first Wal-Mart Discount City store. Within five years, the company expanded to 24 stores across Arkansas and reached $12.6 million in sales.[6] In 1968, it opened its first stores outside Arkansas, in Sikeston, Missouri and Claremore, Oklahoma.[7]
Incorporation and growth
The company was incorporated as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. on October 31, 1969. In 1970, it opened its home office and first distribution center in Bentonville, Arkansas. It had 38 stores operating with 1,500 employees and sales of $44.2 million. The company began trading stock as a publicly-held company on October 1, 1972, and was soon listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The first stock split occurred in May 1971 at a market price of $47. By this time, Wal-Mart was operating in five states: Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, and Oklahoma; it entered Tennessee in 1973 and Kentucky and Mississippi in 1974. As it moved into Texas in 1975, there were 125 stores with 7,500 employees and total sales of $340.3 million.
During the 1980s, Wal-Mart continued to grow rapidly, and by its 25th anniversary in 1987 there were 1,198 stores with sales of $15.9 billion and 200,000 associates.[7] This year also marked the completion of the company's satellite network, a $24 million investment linking all operating units of the company with its Bentonville office via two-way voice and data transmission and one-way video communication. At the time, it was the largest private satellite network, allowing the corporate office to track inventory and sales and to instantly communicate to stores.[8] In 1988, Sam Walton stepped down as CEO and was replaced by David Glass.[9] Walton remained as Chairman of the Board of Directors, and the company also restructured its senior management positions, elevating a cadre of executives to positions of greater responsibility.[vague]
A renovated Wal-Mart Supercentre in Canada promoting its grocery, deli and bakery operations
Also in 1988, the first Wal-Mart Supercenter opened in Washington, Missouri.[10] Wal-Mart expanded its superstore concept[vague] during the 1990s, and shortly thereafter surpassed Toys "R" Us in toy sales.[11] The company also opened overseas stores, entering South America in 1995 with stores in Argentina and Brazil. It entered Europe in 1999, buying ASDA in the UK for $10 billion.
In 1998, Wal-Mart entered the grocery business, introducing the "Neighborhood Market" concept with three stores in Arkansas.[13] By 2005, estimates indicate that the company controlled about 20% of the retail grocery and consumables business.[14]
In 2000, H. Lee Scott became President and CEO of the company, and Wal-Mart's sales increased to $165 billion.[15] In 2002, Wal-Mart was listed for the first time as America's largest corporation on the Fortune 500 list, with revenues of $219.8 billion and profits of $6.7 billion. It has since remained there every year, except for 2006.
In 2005, Wal-Mart had $312.4 billion in sales, more than 6,200 facilities around the world—including 3,800 stores in the United States and 2,800 elsewhere, employing more than 1.6 million "associates" worldwide. Its U.S. presence grew so rapidly that only small pockets of the country remained further than 60 miles (100 km) from the nearest Wal-Mart.[18]
As Wal-Mart grew rapidly into the world's largest corporation, many critics worried about the effect of its stores on local communities, particularly small towns with many "mom and pop" stores. There have been several studies on the economic impact of Wal-Mart on small towns and local businesses, jobs, and taxpayers. In one study, Kenneth Stone, a Professor of Economics at Iowa State University, found that some small towns can lose almost half of their retail trade within ten years of a Wal-Mart store opening.[19] However, in another study, he compared the changes to what previous small town shops had faced in the past — including the development of the railroads, the advent of the Sears Roebuck catalog, as well as the arrival of shopping malls — and concluded that shop owners who adapt to changes in the retail market can thrive after Wal-Mart arrives.[19] A subsequent study in collaboration with Mississippi State University indicated that there are "both positive and negative impacts on existing stores in the area where the new supercenter locates."[20] (See also: Criticism of Wal-Mart: Economic impact)
Recent initiatives
In October 2005, Wal-Mart announced it would implement several environmental measures to increase energy efficiency. The primary goals included spending $500 million a year to increase fuel efficiency in Wal-Mart’s truck fleet by 25% over three years and double it within ten, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% in seven years, reduce energy use at stores by 30%, and cut solid waste from U.S. stores and Sam’s Clubs by 25% in three years. CEO Lee Scott said that Wal-Mart's goal was to be a "good steward for the environment" and ultimately use only renewable energy sources and produce zero waste.[21] The company also designed two new experimental stores in McKinney, Texas and Aurora, Colorado with wind turbines, photovoltaic solar panels, biofuel-capable boilers, water-cooled refrigerators, and xeriscape gardens.[22] Despite much criticism of its environmental record, Wal-Mart took a few steps in a positive direction, which included becoming the biggest seller of organic milk and the biggest buyer of organic cotton in the world, as well as reducing packaging and energy costs.[23] Wal-Mart also spent nearly a year working with outside consultants to discover the company's total environmental impact and find where they could improve. They discovered, for example, that by eliminating excess packaging on their toy line Kid Connection, they could save $2.4 million a year in shipping costs, 3,800 trees, and a million barrels of oil.[23]
In March 2006, Wal-Mart sought to appeal to a more affluent demographic. The company launched a new supercenter concept in Plano, Texas, intended to compete against stores seen as more upscale and appealing, such as Target. The new store has wood floors, wider aisles, a sushi bar, a coffee/sandwich shop with free Wi-FiInternet access, and more expensive beers, wines, electronics, and other goods. The exterior has a hunter green background behind the Wal-Mart letters, similar to Wal-Mart Neighborhood Markets, instead of the blue previously used at its supercenters.
On September 12, 2007, Wal-Mart introduced new advertising with the slogan, "Save Money Live Better," replacing the "Always Low Prices, Always" slogan, which it had used for the previous 19 years. Global Insight, which conducted the research that supported the ads, found that Wal-Mart's price level reduction resulted in savings for consumers of $287 billion in 2006, which equated to $957 per person or $2,500 per household (up 7.3% from the 2004 savings estimate of $2,329).[26]
Wal-Mart Stores Division U.S. is Wal-Mart's largest business subsidiary, accounting for 67.2% of net sales for financial year 2006.[27] It consists of three retail formats that have become commonplace in the United States: Discount Stores, Supercenters, and Neighborhood Markets. The retail department stores sell a variety of non-grocery products, though emphasis has now shifted towards supercenters, which include more grocery items. This division also includes Wal-Mart's online retailer, walmart.com. On February 6, 2007, the company launched a "beta" version of its new movie download service, mediadownloads.walmart.com, which sells 3,000 films and television episodes from all major studios and television networks.[28] This service was discontinued on December 21, 2007.
The first Wal-Mart store opened in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962. It was later remodeled and expanded into a 24-hour Wal-Mart Supercenter.
In 1990, Wal-Mart opened its first Bud's Discount City location in Bentonville. Bud's operated as a closeout store, much like Big Lots. Many locations were opened to fulfill leases in shopping centers as Wal-Mart stores left and moved into newly-built Supercenters. All of the Bud's Discount City stores closed or converted into Wal-Mart Discount Stores by 1997.[31][6]
As of November 30, 2007, there were 979 Wal-Mart Discount Stores in the United States. In 2006, the busiest Discount Store in the world was located in Rapid City, South Dakota.[32]
Wal-Mart Supercenter
Wal-Mart Supercenters are hypermarkets with size varying from 98,000 square feet (9,104.5 m²) to 261,000 square feet (24,247.7 m²), with an average of about 197,000 square feet (18,301.9 m²).[27] These stock everything a Wal-Mart Discount Store does, and also include a full-service supermarket, including meat and poultry, baked goods, delicatessen, frozen foods, dairy products, garden produce, and fresh seafood. Many Wal-Mart Supercenters also have a garden center, pet shop, pharmacy, Tire & Lube Express, optical center, one-hour photo processing lab, portrait studio, and numerous alcove shops, such as cellular phone stores, hair and nail salons, video rental stores, local bank branches, and fast food outlets. Some also sell gasoline; distributors include Murphy Oil Corporation (whose Wal-Mart stations are branded as "Murphy USA"), Sunoco, Inc. ("Optima"), or Tesoro Corporation ("Mirastar").[30]
The first Supercenter opened in 1988 in Washington, Missouri. A similar concept, Hypermart USA, opened in Garland, Texas a year earlier. All of the Hypermart USA stores were later closed or converted into Supercenters.
As of November 30, 2007, there were 2,435 Wal-Mart Supercenters in the United States.
Pirates of the Caribbean Walmart Commercial
Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market
Wal-Mart Neighborhood Markets are grocery stores that average about 42,000 square feet (3,901.9 m²).[27] They offer a variety of products, which include full lines of groceries, pharmaceuticals, health and beauty aids, photo developing services, and a limited selection of general merchandise.
Sam's Club is a chain of warehouse clubs which sell groceries and general merchandise, often in large quantities. Sam's Club stores are "membership" stores and most customers buy annual memberships. However, non-members can make purchases either by buying a one-day membership or paying a surcharge based on the price of the purchase.[33] Some locations also sell gasoline.[30] The first Sam's Club opened in 1983 in Midwest City, Oklahoma[33] under the name "Sam's Wholesale Club".
Sam's has found a niche market in recent years as a supplier to small businesses. All Sam's Club stores are open early hours exclusively for business members and its slogan, as such, is "We're In Business for Small Business."
According to Wal-Mart's 2007 Annual Report, Sam's Club's sales during 2007 were $42 billion, or 12.1% of Wal-Mart's total 2007 sales.[34] As of November 30, 2007, there were 586 Sam's Clubs in the United States.
Wal-Mart's international operations currently comprise 2,980 stores in 14 countries outside the United States.[35] According to Wal-Mart's 2006 Annual Report, the International division accounted for about 20.1% of sales.[27] There are wholly-owned operations in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Puerto Rico (while PR is technically a US territory, the company's operations there are managed through its international division[35]), and the UK. With 1.8 million employees worldwide, the company is the largest private employer in the US and Mexico, and one of the largest in Canada.[36]
Sales in 2006 for Wal-Mart's UK subsidiary, ASDA (an abbreviation of ASquith and DAiries), accounted for 42.7% of sales of Wal-Mart's international division. In contrast to Wal-Mart's US operations, ASDA was originally and still remains primarily a grocery chain, but with a stronger focus on non-food items than most UK supermarket chains (another exception being Tesco, UK's largest grocery and non-food retailer). At the end of 2007, ASDA had 340 stores, primarily ASDA Wal-Mart Supercenters, as well as ASDA Supermarkets, ASDA Living, George High Street and ASDA Essentials stores.[38]
In addition to its wholly-owned international operations, Wal-Mart has joint ventures in China and several majority-owned subsidiaries. Wal-Mart's majority-owned subsidiary in Mexico is Walmex. In Japan, Wal-Mart owns about 53% of Seiyu.[39] Additionally, Wal-Mart owns 51% of the Central American Retail Holding Company (CARHCO), consisting of more than 360 supermarkets and other stores in five Central American countries: Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica.[40]
In 2004, Wal-Mart bought the 116 stores in the Bompreço supermarket chain in northeastern Brazil. In late 2005, it took control of the Brazilian operations of Sonae Distribution Group through its new subsidiary, WMS Supermercados do Brasil, thus acquiring control of the Nacional and Mercadorama supermarket chains, the leaders in the Rio Grande do Sul and Paraná states, respectively. None of these was rebranded. As of August 2006, Wal-Mart operates 71 Bompreço stores, 27 Hiper-Bompreço stores, 15 Balaio stores, and three Hiper-Magazines (all originally part of Bompreço). It also runs 19 Wal-Mart Supercenters, 13 Sam's Club stores, and two Todo Dia stores. With the acquisition of Bompreço and Sonae, Wal-Mart is currently the third largest supermarket chain in Brazil, behind Carrefour and Pão de Açúcar.[41]
In July 2006, Wal-Mart announced its withdrawal from Germany due to sustained losses in a highly-competitive market. The stores were sold to the German company Metro during Wal-Mart's fiscal third quarter.[42][39]
In November 2006, Wal-Mart announced a joint venture with Bharti Enterprises to open retail stores in India. As foreign corporations are not allowed to directly enter the retail sector in India, Wal-Mart will operate through franchises and handle the wholesale end.[43] The partnership will involve two joint ventures; Bharti will manage the front end involving opening of retail outlets, while Wal-Mart will take care of the back end, such as cold chains and logistics.
Walmart Commercial
Private label brands
About 40% of products sold in Wal-Mart are private labelstore brands, or products offered by Wal-Mart and produced through subsidized contracts awarded to the lowest bidder.[44] Wal-Mart began offering private label brands in 1991 with the launch of Sam's Choice, a brand of drinks produced by Cott Beverages exclusively for Wal-Mart. Sam's Choice quickly became popular, and by 1993 was the third beverage brand in the United States.[45] Other Wal-Mart brands include Great Value and Equate in the US and Smart Price in Britain. A 2006 study talked of "the magnitude of mind-share Wal-Mart appears to hold in shoppers' minds when it comes to awareness of private label brands and retailers."[46]
Corporate affairs
Wal-Mart's business model is based on selling a wide variety of general merchandise at "always low prices."[27] The company refers to its employees as "associates". All Wal-Mart stores in the US and Canada also have designated "greeters", who welcome shoppers at the store entrance.
In June, 2007. Wal-Mart announced it was retiring the blue vest its 1.5 million associates wear, and replacing it with khakis and polos. The replacement was to help Wal-Mart increase sales.
Unlike many other retailers, Wal-Mart does not charge a slotting fee to suppliers for their products to appear in the store.[48] Instead, it focuses on selling more popular products and often pressures store managers to drop unpopular products, as well as asking manufacturers to supply more popular products.[48] More than 70% of the goods sold in Wal-Mart are manufactured in China.[49][50]
On September 14, 2006, the company announced that it would phase out its layaway program, citing declining use and increased costs.[51] Layaway ceased to be offered on November 19, 2006, and required merchandise pickup by December 8, 2006. Wal-Mart now focuses on other payment options, such as increased use of six- and twelve-month, zero-interest financing. The layaway location in most stores is now used for Wal-Mart's Site-To-Store program, which was introduced in March 2007. This enables walmart.com customers to buy goods online with a free shipping option, and have goods shipped to the nearest store for pickup.[52]
Financial
In 2006, Wal-Mart was 67th most profitable corporation (profits divided by total revenue), behind retailers Home Depot, Dell, and Target, and ahead of Costco and Kroger.[53] For the fiscal year ending January 31, 2006, Wal-Mart reported a net income of $12.178 billion on $344.992 billion of sales revenue (3.5% profit margin).[54] For the fiscal year ending January 31, 2006, Wal-Mart's international operations accounted for about 20.1% of total sales.[27] As of Jan 10, 2008, net sales for the 48-week period ending Jan 04, 2008 was $348.1 billion, up 8.6% from the previous year's results.[55]
Notable former members of the board include Hillary Clinton (1985–1992)[57] and Tom Coughlin (2003–2004), the latter having served as Vice Chairman. Clinton left the board before the 1992 U.S. Presidential Election, and Coughlin left in December 2005 after pleading guilty to wire fraud and tax evasion for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from Wal-Mart.[58] On August 11, 2006, he was sentenced to 27 months of home confinement, five years of probation, and ordered to pay $411,000 in restitution.[59]
Competition
In North America, Wal-Mart's primary competition includes department stores like Kmart, Target, ShopKo, Meijer, and Canada's Zellers, Winners, and Giant Tiger. Competitors of Wal-Mart's Sam's Club division are Costco, and the smaller BJ's Wholesale Club chain operating mainly in the eastern US. Wal-Mart's move into the grocery business in the late 1990s also set it against major supermarket chains in both the United States and Canada. Several smaller retailers, primarily dollar stores, such as Family Dollar and Dollar General, have been able to find a small niche market and compete successfully against Wal-Mart for home consumer sales.[60] In 2004, Wal-Mart responded by testing its own dollar store concept, a subsection of some stores called "Pennies-n-Cents."[61]
Wal-Mart also had to face fierce competition in some foreign markets. For example, in Germany it had captured just 2% of German food market following its entry into the market in 1997 and remained "a secondary player" behind Aldi with a 19% share.[62] In July 2006, Wal-Mart announced its withdrawal from Germany. Its stores were sold to German company Metro.[42] Wal-Mart continues to do well in the UK, and its ASDA subsidiary is the second largest chain after Tesco.[63]
In May 2006, after entering the South Korean market in 1998, Wal-Mart withdrew and sold all 16 of its South Korean outlets to Shinsegae, a local retailer, for $882 million. Shinsegae re-branded the Wal-Marts as E-mart stores.[64]
Wal-Mart struggled to export its brand elsewhere as it rigidly tried to reproduce its model overseas. In China, Wal-Mart hopes to succeed by adapting and doing things the Chinese way. For example, it found that Chinese consumers preferred to select their own live fish and seafood; stores began displaying the meat uncovered and installed fish tanks, leading to higher sales.[65]
In addition, under heavy pressure from the Chinese government, Wal-Mart accepted a form of organized labor in China. Chinese labor unions do not negotiate contracts but simply pay dues to the government, "to secure the social order." However, Chinese consumers may be more open to Americana than shoppers in Europe.
Street sign for Wal*Mart Drive near Gordon, Pennsylvania
Customer base
Each week, about 100 million customers, nearly one-third of the US population, visit Wal-Mart's US stores.[67] Wal-Mart customers give low prices as the most important reason for shopping there, reflecting the "Low prices, always" advertising slogan that Wal-Mart used from 1962 until 2006.[68] The average US Wal-Mart customer's income is below the national average, and analysts recently estimated that more than one-fifth of them lack a bank account, twice the national rate.[69] A Wal-Mart financial report in 2006 also indicated that Wal-Mart customers are sensitive to higher utility costs and gas prices.[70] A poll before the 2004 US Presidential Election indicated that 76% of voters who shopped at Wal-Mart once a week planned to vote for George W. Bush, while only 23% planned to vote for John Kerry.[71] When measured against other similar retailers in the US, frequent Wal-Mart shoppers were rated the most politically conservative.[72]
In 2006, Wal-Mart took steps to expand its US customer base, announcing a modification in its US stores from a "one-size-fits-all" merchandising strategy to one designed to "reflect each of six demographic groups – African-Americans, the affluent, empty-nesters, Hispanics, suburbanites and rural residents."[73] Around six months later, it unveiled a new slogan: "Saving people money so they can live better lives". This reflects the three main groups into which Wal-Mart categorizes its 200 million customers: "brand aspirationals" (people with low incomes who are obsessed with names like KitchenAid), "price-sensitive affluents" (wealthier shoppers who love deals), and "value-price shoppers" (people who like low prices and cannot afford much more).[68] Wal-Mart has also made steps to appeal to more liberal customers, for example, by rejecting the American Family Association's recommendations and carrying the DVDBrokeback Mountain, a love story between two gay cowboys in Wyoming.
Employee and labor relations
Labor unions, religious organizations, and environmental groups have criticised Wal-Mart for its policies and/or business practices. In particular, several labor unions blame Wal-Mart workers' unwillingness to join their organizations on the company's anti-union stance. Others disapprove of the corporation's extensive foreign product sourcing, treatment of employees and product suppliers, environmental practices, and use of public subsidies, and the impact of stores on the local economies of towns in which they operate.
In 2005, labor unions created several websites and front organizations defaming Wal-Mart's public image. These included Wake Up Wal-Mart (United Food and Commercial Workers) and Wal-Mart Watch (Service Employees International Union). By the end of 2005, Wal-Mart launched Working Families for Wal-Mart, an operation managed by Wal-Mart to tell the company's side of the story. Additional efforts to counter criticism included a PR campaign in 2005, managed through its PR website walmartfacts.com,[81] as well as several television commercials. The company retained the PR firm Edelman to respond to negative media attention,[82] and started interacting directly with bloggers by sending them news, suggesting topics for postings, and sometimes inviting them to visit its corporate headquarters.[83]
Critics decry Wal-Mart's employee and workforce relations, low wages, poor working conditions, and inadequate health care. They also denounce what they call the company's anti-union policies, and claim that Wal-Mart's high turnover rate (about 70% of its employees leave within the first year) shows that workers are dissatisfied with the lack of recognition and inadequate pay.[84]
In response, Jay Nordlinger of National Review argues that Wal-Mart is attacked simply because it is a leader of the Fortune 500 list or the largest employer in America, and a "free-market success story".[85]Penn & Teller devoted an episode of their show to an analysis of Wal-Mart criticism as a social movement. They theorized that despite the noble rhetoric, the real motivation of "Wal-Mart haters" was rooted in human psychology. They suggested that hating Wal-Mart permits a person "to feel better about themselves" for three main reasons: They "don't run a greedy international conglomerate", they aren't Wal-Mart workers, widely considered "low-skilled, minimum wage drones", and they aren't Wal-Mart customers thought of as "toothless, welfare-getting hillbillies".
Diversity
Wal-Mart is currently facing a gender discrimination lawsuit, Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., which alleges that female employees were discriminated against in matters regarding pay and promotions. In February 2007, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a 2–1 ruling which affirmed a lower court ruling to certify the case as a class-action lawsuit; plaintiffs estimate that about 1.6 million women could be included in the suit.[87][88] According to a consultant hired by plaintiffs in a sex discrimination lawsuit,[89][90] in 2001, Wal-Mart's EEOC filings showed that female employees made up 72% of Wal-Mart's workforce, but only 30% of its management (a 15% difference[vague] from the population ratio, 4% higher than the rest of the industry[vague]). The consultant claims this ratio was typical in 1975.[89][90] On April 3, 2007, Wal-Mart reported that female employees were now 61% of its workforce and 40% of its management.[91]
From 2002 through 2006, Wal-Mart received steadily increasing scores on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, a measure of how companies treat LGBT employees and customers. The company's rating increased from 14% in 2002 to 43% in 2004, due to an expanded antidiscrimination policy to protect gay and lesbian employees.[94] The score increased to 57% in 2005, because of the company's new definition of family that included same-sex partners,[95] and increased again in 2006 to a high of 65%.[96] However, the rating for the 2008 edition dropped back to 40%, attributable to losses in two key areas: not renewing its membership in the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (which it joined in 2006), and a discrepancy from last year's study that was discovered in this year's answers and resulted in another 10-point loss. (By comparison, Target scored 80% and Kmart 100%.) As a result of the 40% rating, HRC encouraged consumers to "strongly consider other [shopping] options."[97]
In January 2006, Wal-Mart announced that "diversity efforts include new groups of minority, female and gay employees that meet at Wal-Mart headquarters in Bentonville to advise the company on marketing and internal promotion. There are seven so-called Business Resource Groups: women, African-Americans, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans, Gays and Lesbians, and a disabled group."
