About Walmart Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is the largest retailer in the world, the worldâs second-largest company and the nationâs largest nongovernmental employer.  Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. operates retail stores in various retailing formats in all 50 states in the United States. The Companyâs mass merchandising operations serve its customers primarily through the operation of three segments. The Wal-Mart Stores segment includes its discount stores, Supercenters, and Neighborhood Markets in the United States. The Samâs club segment includes the warehouse membership clubs in the United States. The Companyâs subsidiary, McLane Company, Inc. provides products and distribution services to retail industry and institutional foodservice customers. Wal-Mart serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at more than 8,416 retail units under 53 different banners in 15 countries. With fiscal year 2010 sales of $405 billion, Wal-Mart employs more than 2.1 million associates worldwide. Nearly 75% of its stores are Continue reading
Management Case Studies
Management case studies are real-life examples of issues and problems found in particular workplaces or business organisations. Case study assignments give the opportunity to relate theoretical concepts to practical situations. Most case studies are written in such a way that the reader takes the place of the manager whose responsibility is to make decisions to help solve the problem. In almost all case studies, a decision must be made, although that decision might be to leave the situation as it is and do nothing.
Case Study: Wal-Martâs Distribution and Logistics System
As the worldâs largest retailer with net sales of almost $419 billion for the fiscal year 2011, Wal-Mart is considered a âbest-in-classâ company for its supply chain management practices.  These practices are a key competitive advantage that have enabled Wal-Mart to achieve leadership in the retail industry through a focus on increasing operational efficiency and on customer needs. Wal-Martâs corporate website calls âlogisticsâ and âdistributionâ the heart of its operation, one that keeps millions of products moving to customers every day of the year. Wal-Martâs highly-automated distribution centers, which operate 24 hours a day and are served by Wal-Martâs truck fleet, are the foundation of its growth strategy and supply network. In the United States alone, the company has more than 40 regional distribution centers for import flow and more than 140 distribution centers for domestic flow. When entering a new geographic arena, the company first determines if the Continue reading
Case Study of Walmart: Procurement and Distribution
Wal-Mart always emphasized the need to reduce its purchasing costs and offer the best price to its customers. The company procured goods directly from manufacturers, bypassing all intermediaries. Wal-Mart was a tough negotiator on prices and finalized a purchase deal only when it was fully confident that the products being bought were not available elsewhere at a lower price. According to Claude Harris, one of the earliest employees, âEvery buyer has to be tough. That is the job. I always told the buyers: âYou are negotiating for your customer. And your customer deserves the best prices that you can get. Donât ever feel sorry for a vendor. He always knows what he can sell, and we want his bottom price. âWe would tell the vendors,â Donât leave in any room for a kickback because we donât do it here. And we donât want your advertising program or delivery program. Our Continue reading
Case Study: Toyota Prius Marketing Strategies
Toyota manufactures cars, which has a wide coverage from economic minibus to luxurious cars, SUV. The brand on sell includes Crown, Reiz, Vios, Corolla, Coaster and Prius. And Prius is the brand or car that Toyota has made a significant success in American market. It is a hybrid vehicle. What are the characteristics of it? Hybrid vehicles have both a gas engine and an electric motor. When starting up or at very low speeds (under 15 mph), the auto runs on the electric motor. At roughly 15 mph, the gas engine kicks in. this means that the auto gets power from only the battery at low speeds, and from both the gas engine and electric motor during heavy acceleration. When starting up and operating at low speed speeds, the auto does not make noise, which seems eerie to some drivers and to pedestrians who donât hear it coming! Toyota Prius Continue reading
Case Study: McDonalds Marketing Strategies
McDonaldâs is the worldâs largest fast-food restaurant chain. It has more than 30,000 restaurants in over 100 countries. Over one billion more customers were served in 2007 than in 2006. Although net income was down by $1.1 billion in 2007, McDonaldâs sales were up 6.8%, and revenue was a record high of $23 billion. âThe unique business relationship among the company, its franchisees and suppliers (collectively referred to as the System) has been key to McDonaldâs success over the years. The business model enables McDonaldâs to play an integral role in the communities we serve and consistently deliver relevant restaurant experiences to customers.â McDonaldâs overall strategic plan is called Plan to Win. Their focus is not so much on being the biggest fast-food restaurant chain, rather it is more focused on being the best fast-food restaurant chain. McDonaldâs âstrategic alignment behind this plan has created better McDonaldâs experiences through the Continue reading
Case Study: Wal-Martâs Failure in Germany
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is the largest retailer in the world, the worldâs second-largest company and the nationâs largest non-governmental employer. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. operates retail stores in various retailing formats in all 50 states in the United States. The Companyâs mass merchandising operations serve its customers primarily through the operation of three segments. The Wal-Mart Stores segment includes its discount stores, Supercenters, and Neighborhood Markets in the United States. The Samâs club segment includes the warehouse membership clubs in the United States. The Companyâs subsidiary, McLane Company, Inc. provides products and distribution services to retail industry and institutional foodservice customers. Wal-Mart serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at more than 8,416 retail units under 53 different banners in 15 countries. With fiscal year 2010 sales of $405 billion, Wal-Mart employs more than 2.1 million associates worldwide. Nearly 75% of its stores are in the United Continue reading