Word: marte
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...third-floor office suite in downtown Washington, Wal-Mart staff members are planning a public-opinion counteroffensive. The retailer, once focused only on keeping its shelves stocked and its prices low, is doubling the size of its Washington lobbying operation. It is touting its charitable deeds, backed by a national advertising campaign and a website called walmartfacts.com Why? Because across town, a group of twentysomething activists working for a union-backed organization called Wake-Up Wal-Mart is preparing attacks on the corporate giant's reputation. In the group's office, littered with handwritten signs like THEY PROFIT...
...battle between Wal-Mart and its antagonists has a new front: Washington. After years of Wal-Mart's getting bashed by labor and other corporate critics, CEO Lee Scott decided in January to launch an aggressive campaign to defend his empire. "We have let other people shape our reputation," says Ray Bracy, a Wal-Mart vice president in charge of government relations, who has led its expanded Washington footprint. Scott has met face to face with Senate Republican leader Bill Frist, Democratic leader Harry Reid and many other lawmakers. Wal-Mart, which gave 78% of its $1.7 million in campaign...
...Antonio Galafassi, president of Tramontina USA. Although labor costs are higher, the plant's efficiency and its proximity to big customers offset that disadvantage. The company opened a distribution center in Houston in 1986, when it entered the U.S. market, but after securing contracts with the likes of Wal-Mart and Costco, the company wanted a domestic manufacturing presence. Tramontina settled on Manitowoc because the city's former Mirro cookware plant, shut down in April 2003, had everything the Brazilian company needed. "The factory was in great shape, and we have access to a highly skilled work force with...
...Schwarz's parent company twice filed for bankruptcy. Meanwhile, consolidation among toymakers means Hasbro and Mattel have ever more control over what toys get sold. But even those huge toymakers feel added pressure over what to produce, thanks to the growing buying power of such huge distributors as Wal-Mart. "We need a shake-up in toys," says toy designer and Marvel Studios CEO Avi Arad. "I'm sure Roger has a couple of tricks up his sleeve...
Blood is not specific about where they will invest but theorizes, for instance, that BP might have an edge over other oil companies, thanks to its interest in green technologies; Costco would be a better long-term bet than Wal-Mart because it keeps its workers happier. He and Gore even see potential for making money fighting international scourges like AIDS and malaria. "There are risks associated with these issues," says Blood, "but they are also opportunities if businesses can think about them...