Thursday, November 06, 2008

Wal-Mart beats trends, sees same store sales rise

One Wal-Mart post deserves another. I believe this is my first back-to-back Wal-Mart entry.

Retail is a bellwether industry, when it starts slipping, it usually means the whole economy is.

International Council of Shopping Centers announced that last month was the worst October--sales wise--in thirty years, calling it "simply awful."

Guess who did better?

I'll give you a hint, they are based in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. stood out as one of the few bright spots. It posted a better-than-expected 2.4 percent rise in sales at U.S. stores open at least a year. Analysts had forecast a 1.6 percent gain, according to Thomson Reuters.

Wal-Mart's results were a sharp contrast to other discounters like Target Corp and Costco Wholesale Corp, which reported larger-than-expected same-store sales drops. Across the sector, department store chains like Nordstrom Inc and specialty clothing retailers like Abercrombie & Fitch were among those hit hardest.

From a Thursday Wal-Mart Stores press release:

"Customer comparable traffic is higher and our seasonal merchandising events are delivering improved sales," said Eduardo Castro-Wright, president and chief executive of Wal-Mart's U.S. division, in a statement. "Highly competitive pricing, especially on basics throughout the store, is driving these results."

Same-store sales is the standard method to measure the performance of retail chains. It leaves out newly-opened outlets.

In a Wednesday press release, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced it would be cutting prices every week until Christmas.

But as I note one post down, some people just don't like Wal-Mart. Is the world's largest corporation perfect? Of course not. But success in the business world, especially now, should be celebrated.

This is a company that started with one dinky store in the middle of nowhere in 1962.

Related post:

My book report: The Wal-Mart Revolution: How Big Box Stores Benefit Consumers, Workers, and the Economy

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3 comments:

Anonymous said...

You want made in China, shop at
Walmart!

Anonymous said...

I am Count Dracula. My brother is
Frankenstein. More spooky things
are coming to walmart in 2009.

Anonymous said...

Its really great that WalMart Stores Inc. announced it would be cutting prices every week until Christmas.