Wal-Marts Need for Speed

The retailing industry is a major portion of todays business, from everyday items to specialty items. Retailing has always been around but it is now on a large scale that businesses must have a plan to succeed. Efficiency has become king with everyday items while service has mastered the specialty stores. Wal !art has been the leader when it comes to retailing. With over "### stores, Wal !art has set the standard. Today, Wal !art is still the leader but must find new ways to provide what the customer wants. Wal !art has developed many new techni$ues and advanced their technology throughout their store history to improve themselves. %n recent years, they have introduced technology that has improved their inventory system so they no longer need to physically count everything all the time. The new problem Wal !art has now had is their need for speed of products. Wal !art has been seeing their sales slow and is trying a new program called their Remi& program '(udson, )##"*. The Remi& program is a new fast track program that will get certain products out of the warehouses and onto the store shelves faster than before. This will hopefully increase its sales so that Wal !art wont have to worry about empty store shelves when items could be there for sale '(udson, )##"* The role of retailing is defined as all activities directly related to the sale of goods and services to the ultimate consumer for personal use '+amb et al., )##,*. Wal !art

fits the definition of this because it provides for our needs and wants. With their new retailing mi&, they are now trying to provide an even better service. -f all the .s of the marketing and retailing mi&, the one they are now tying to improve is their product. Wal

!arts product variety and selection has never been the problem. /ow ensuring that their product is available at all times has now become the problem. !any items in Wal !arts vast line of products are top sellers. Things such as food, toilet paper, toothpaste and paper towels have gone off the shelf without being replenished fast enough '(udson, )##"*. The products were arriving from the warehouses to the stores at the same time that all other products were. 0o to combat that problem, their Remi&, as mentioned earlier, will bring those products to the store faster. They will no longer have to wait with all the regular selling items but can be put on store shelves sooner so customers will continue to purchase these items. This thought process and new program that Wal !art has developed is a well thought of plan. Their marketing team identified the slowing sales and looked at what could be done to improve sales and cut costs. 1fter their business analysis showed them that they could provide more for the customers by having products available at all times, they developed the Remi& program. % think it shows how businesses are looking at supply chain solutions today. !ost customers already can get what they need from one place or another, but how fast they can get it and also how easily they can get it is the new task for businesses to figure out. What Wal !art has done is revamped their supplying issues. When Wal !art first came into the grocery business in the mid 233#s it used a distributor called !c+ane 4o. to help it learn how to distribute its perishable goods apart from its regular merchandise '(udson, )##"*. There are now warehouses set apart for the better selling

items and specialty items so that they can ensure the stores will be stocked for consumers. /ow that Wal !art has learned how to manage their own supply chain issues, they sold off !c+ane 4o. and took over their own distribution. % see it as a smart move on Wal

!arts part because they took out the distributor factor of their supply chain and managed themselves. That means that they could control costs, distribution, and manage it the way they needed to as to provide the most efficiency. -ne reason that Wal !art has been able to provide such low prices on items is that they cut out the merchant wholesalers. The marketing channels they mostly use now are the retailer channel which means that the product goes from the producer to the retailer to the consumer '+amb et al., )##,*. Wal !art isnt also just taking out their middle men to provide for consumers. -nline retailing has been a huge success with tons of businesses today. Wal !art is no e&ception. Wal !art sells all of its merchandise that it has in its stores on its website. %t then uses a third party such as 5.0 to ship the product to their door. That is another way that Wal !art is cutting the cost of maintaining its stores, but still providing for the customer directly. Wal !art is always looking for new ways to cut costs and promote sales and grow. +ately, the growth of Wal !art has had to slow down. While they are improving their efficiency in departments such as distribution and product placement, they have started to become too big for their own good. This year alone, Wal !art will open over ,2" new stores globally '(udson, )##,*. The rate of e&pansion has been about 67 over the years, but is now being cut back. 1gain, this comes to the issue of Wal !arts retailing mi&. This time % took a look at the .lace of the si& .s '+amb et al., )##,*. 0ince they have so many stores and keep e&panding they have been able to provide the customer needs in almost any and all locations thus far. 8ut when is enough9 Wal !art isnt completely stopping its growth. %t told investors that it would like to just start focusing on returns instead of growth '(udson, )##,*. The cut backs are going to give

Wal !art a chance to buy back company stock but also to improve itself. %t wants to become like Target and cater to more hip and trendy clothes and other items. 1nalyst 8ill :reher says that ;<Wal !art is willing to look at their business model from a fresh perspective<they are not just mindlessly continuing on the same focus that theyve had for years.='(udson, )##,*. !any companies do just continue on the same track without adapting to change like they should. These companies also have faltered because they figure that their plan has worked for so many years, why shouldnt it work today9 Todays market is one of constant change. 4ompanies must figure out the way to be the best in their market. >rom distribution channels to product placement, everything is constantly changing and reacting to customers needs and wants. Wal !art is accomplishing this and that is what makes them a market leader.

References

+amb, 4., (air, ?., @ !c:aniel, 4. ')##,*. Marketing. !ason, -hioA Thomason 0outh Western

(udson, B. ')##", 0eptember ),*. Wal !arts /eed for 0peed. Wall Street Journal, pg 8.C

(udson, B. ')##,, -ctober )C*. Wal !art 0cales 8ack E&pansion, 0pending as 0ales Drowth 0lows. Wall Street Journal, pg 1.2