Word: stores
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Walmart, the world's largest retailer, has seen better days. Yes, profits rose 22%, to $4.63 billion, in the fourth quarter of '09. Even coming out of the Great Recession, many consumers are trading down to shop at the discount superstore. However, for the third straight quarter the store saw negative same-store sales growth; during the last three months of 2009, same-store sales dropped 2%. Overall traffic in Walmart stores was down too. To Walmart executives and investors, this disturbing trend has to be reversed; despite the earnings growth, Walmart's stock fell 1.1% on the day earnings...
...First off, food deflation in 2009 impacted the entire grocery business. However, a strategic shift from Walmart backfired a bit. In order to implement its "Project Impact" plan, which called for less clutter in the aisles and more space given to other product categories like toys and electronics, the store offered a narrower selection of brands and package sizes in its grocery section, which accounted for some 45% of its store space. This move had a two-pronged effect. Some shoppers, faced with a less robust grocery selection from Walmart, decided to make an extra trip to the neighborhood supermarket...
...results were roughly in line with same-store sales reported last week. In that report, owners posted a 4% year-over-year sales increase in February at stores they had owned at least a year, reversing the 4.7% decline posted during the same month a year earlier. Today's report casts a wider net, covering everything from mom-and-pop retail shops to car dealers, so the fact that it is similar to what big retailers were reporting says the February gains were broadly distributed - a positive sign for the economy...
...AlixPartners report released earlier this month showed a clear "shift to thrift" among the 7,700 Americans surveyed. The report found 66% of department-store shoppers, 55% of apparel consumers and 53% of electronics shoppers had switched retailers to find lower-priced goods. Consumers who used to shop for "the best" are now settling for products that are "good enough" with a lower price tag, the report said. (See pictures of retailers that have gone out of business...
...Edwards had at it. Since he was just following NASCAR's edict, how could the circuit punish him? "You know, you can't tell kids to go in the candy store and help themselves," says Waltrip, "and when they're in there, say, 'Oh my gosh, y'all took a lot more than I thought you were going to." NASCAR may regret the "have at it" declaration. "In January, I told [NASCAR president] Mike Helton, 'I love what you're doing,' " says Waltrip. " 'But I don't love that you said that. You should have let it happen...