Word: marte
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...more than 3,200 stores in the U.S., Wal-Mart does not recognize any unions for collective bargaining. The company's official policy as posted on its website is that "because we believe in maintaining an environment of open communications, we do not believe there is a need for third-party representation." But the retail giant has taken a different approach toward its 42 stores in China. Last week, the company issued a statement saying: "Should [employees] request formation of a union, Wal-Mart China would respect their wishes and honor its obligation under China's Trade Union...
...forgiven for double-checking the name on the façade. Perhaps it's the barbecue grills on sale outside the entrance, an echo of Home Depot's parking-lot bonanzas, or the reams of DVDs, CDs and books that make you think you've stumbled into Wal-Mart. Maybe it's the colorful signs hanging from the industrial, sky-high ceiling, festooned with cheeky slogans like IT'S THE LITTLE THINGS THAT COUNT, which remind one of the king of cheap chic, Target. Then again it could be the 10-ft.-wide aisles and end-cap displays with towering boxes...
Notwithstanding all the talk about scale, $300 million in annual cost savings and sizable purchasing power, the merger isn't so much an attempt to take on a behemoth like Wal-Mart as it is to survive in spite of it. Even with a combined $55 billion in annual sales, Sears and Kmart will be just one-fifth the size of Wal-Mart, which "is so overwhelming in terms of market share, logistics and efficiency that going up against them would be futile," as Michael Appel, managing director of Quest Turnaround Advisers, puts...
...niche as a middle-market power retailer focused on fashion and the home, with more attitude and style than JCPenney could ever hope to have. "We are the trade up," Sears CEO Alan Lacy said almost defiantly at the announcement of the deal. "We sell better things than Wal-Mart and Target. We've got better brands [and] better service...
...past couple of decades, both Sears and Kmart have become mere shadows of themselves, plagued by aging, poorly stocked stores; management turmoil; outdated merchandise; and a lack of sophisticated IT systems--or, for that matter, a clear identity. Whereas Kmart has failed miserably to compete on price with Wal-Mart or on style with Target, Sears has found it harder and harder to stay relevant at its aging 870 mall locations, about the same number of stores it had back in 1970. It has tried everything from financial services (its "socks and stocks" period) to home improvement (the Great Indoors...