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

Technorati tags: retail business big box Wal-Mart Target Nordstroms Abercrombie & Fitch Christmas