WALMART POSITIVE ECONOMIC IMPACT

Walmart Positive Economic Impact

Outline

Introduction

In this we provide a brief overview about the company and its functions.

Analysis

In this section we talk about the economic impacts of Walmart under the headings below:

Locations and Growth

Impact on Small Communities

Conclusion

In conclusion we provide a summary of whole case study.

Walmart Positive Economic Impact

Introduction

Walmart has long battled public assertions that when they build in a location, the economy in the community they build declines. In 2007, Walmart embarked on a public relations campaign in order to counter attacks in the press from politicians wanting to keep Walmart out of their community to protect local businesses. Walmart normally ignores issues such as these, but the company needs the goodwill of the community to enable them to open stores. With the current economic conditions, Walmart is able to thrive where other businesses cannot. With price being a driving factor when people are shopping, Walmart has been able to offer consumers quality products at affordable prices more so than any other retailer.

Analysis

Although Walmart has sustained profitability in a slow economy, the company has made strong efforts to give back to the communities in which they operate. In 2006, Walmart provided several communities with a combined total of $300 million. Walmart's corporate giving is governed by a philosophy instituted by the company's founder: Operate globally and give back locally. Walmart in the United States, and its effect on consumer prices, results in an annual cost savings of $263 billion or roughly $895 per person. The study also concluded Walmart created 210,000 new jobs in 2005 (Brunn, Stanley D, 2006).



Locations and Growth

Walmart initially built all their stores in small southern towns. When opening a large store in a small town, Walmart was able to quickly become the dominant retailer. Walmart has been very successful in utilizing the discount store format in the extremely competitive retail environment. Growing from one location in 1962 to later becoming an international chain, competitors have not been able to challenge Walmart in the small towns of its base area (Kabel, Marcus, 2006).

In 2007, Walmart made an effort toward neighborhood marketing via segmentation by tailoring stores to specific demographics. Walmart opened up two Neighborhood Markets, five Walmart discount stores, and 63 Supercenters of which 22 were expansions of the discount store. The new stores were built to target six specific demographic groups including African-Americans, the affluent, ...