Check out this week’s issue of the Wal-Mart Watch Weekly Update for Elected Officials – a compilation of Wal-Mart news from across the country and beyond.
This week’s issue begins with a Bloomberg report of Wal-Mart being placed on a list of most controversial companies. Also named - the company responsible for producing melamine-tainted milk in China. The list includes companies criticized for producing negative impacts on communities, health, and the environment, and was based on a study by RepRisk, a consulting firm that analyzes companies’ exposure to controversial issues and news.
You’ll also find stories from BusinessWeek and the Financial Times on how corporate giants like Wal-Mart are gearing up to battle potential pro-labor legislation in 2009. With President-Elect Barack Obama and the Democrats taking over next year, retailers are bracing to fight the Employee Free Choice Act – or EFCA – which could make it easier to organize unions in the workplace.
In addition to EFCA, you’ll find stories on Wal-Mart and the economy. And from the legal front, read about a $19 million discrimination lawsuit filed against Wal-Mart and Pepsi in West Virginia. Plus, in the world of product safety, read more about questions raised by the controversial chemical BPA, as well how Wal-Mart has been selling lead-tainted face paint for kids…a no-no anytime, and especially around Halloween.
And finally, check out our “Stateside” and “Wal-Mart International” sections to find out what’s going on with Wal-Mart around the country and across the globe. Chicago city aldermen have a wish list for an Obama presidency; the fight continues over whether Wal-Mart can build near a Civil War battlefield in Virginia; and towns in California and Nevada deny Wal-Mart the ability to sell alcohol on its store shelves.
Wal-Mart Watch Weekly Update for Elected Officials [November 12, 2008]
Posted by Corey Himrod | Permalink
Check out this week’s issue of the Wal-Mart Watch Weekly Update for Elected Officials – a compilation of Wal-Mart news from across the country and beyond.
This week’s issue begins on Wal-Mart and the economy, and whether Wal-Mart sales statistics can be used as a new barometer for the U.S. economy. You’ll also find stories on changes in shopper behavior, now that consumers are faced with less disposable income. And, you’ll find stories on Wal-Mart’s slowed growth, and the switch to smaller store formats by retailers across the country.
In addition to the economy, you’ll find stories related to next week’s election. Barack Obama highlighted the story of a 72-year-old man forced to go back to work for Wal-Mart in his half-hour special this past Wednesday night. Meanwhile, according to Reuters Wal-Mart vows to remain non-partisan in the 2008 election season, while the Financial Times reports on the candidates attempting to woo the so-called “Wal-Mart Moms.” Plus, there are suspicions that Wal-Mart is behind a new grassroots group recently set up to fight the Employee Free Choice Act, as reported in The National Journal.
Also: Find out whether a Wal-Mart case in Montana could lead to changes in that state’s campaign finance law.
And finally, check out our “Stateside” and “Wal-Mart International” sections to find out what’s going on with Wal-Mart around the country and across the globe. A California ballot measure could lead to increased demand for more humane animal products, while citizens in Virginia continue to fight Wal-Mart’s attempt to build near an historic Civil War battlefield.
Wal-Mart Watch Weekly Update for Elected Officials [October 31, 2008]
Posted by Corey Himrod | Permalink
Wal-Mart doesn’t have a bank yet in the U.S., but that isn’t stopping ‘em from forging full-steam ahead in Canada and Mexico.
In classic shrewd fashion, Wal-Mart seems to be using the financial crisis and the credit crunch to its advantage. Today’s story in PR Week isn’t the first to imply that Wal-Mart’s application for a bank in Canada might be “received favourably” by officials in a weak economy.
The story also noted for the umpteenth time that:
Wal-Mart Canada did not return calls for comment. In its notice, the retailer did not disclose what kind of banking services it would provide, but it is expected to offer credit card, mortgage, and investment products.
Meanwhile, a Bloomberg News story today tells us that Wal-Mex’s bank is growing. Wal-Mart de Mexico SAB is charging ahead south of the border and planning to unload 100,000 credit cards on Mexicans, targeting primarily the 75 percent of the population who’ve never had a bank account.
Issuing more credit cards as Mexico’s economy slows would allow Walmex, as the company is known, to collect annual interest of as high as 75 percent and encourage purchases of more expensive appliances and furniture at its stores, the only place the cards can be used. Walmex is preparing more financial products aimed at customers who have never had a bank account, about 75 percent of Mexico’s 103 million people.
In case you missed that: Wal-Mart is encouraging Mexicans to go in debt at 75 percent interest.
Presumably, Wal-Mart is trying to set up working bank operations in Canada and Mexico before trying again to apply in the U.S. And now they seem to be using the financial crisis as another tool to get into the banking game.
They certainly can’t expect us to keep quiet about any it.
Posted by Eric Bull | Permalink
No matter how many times Wal-Mart fails to create a “Bank of Wal-Mart,” the company always seems to find a way to bring it back to life.
Seven months ago, we helped keep Wal-Mart out of the banking business. But now, the Federal Reserve is looking into changing the rules completely - and may throw open the door to giant corporations like Wal-Mart to run their own banks.
At a time when our economy is already in crisis, we can’t turn the banking industry over to Wal-Mart. Please write a note to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and the Banking Committee leaders in Congress, and let them know what’s at stake:
http://action.walmartwatch.com/NoBankofWalmart
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by David Nassar, Executive Director | Permalink
After getting shut down in U.S., Wal-Mart looks to lock up the other 2/3 of the continent by getting a bank permit in Canada.
Saturday, Wal-Mart posted its mandatory public notice of its official bank application to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions. The bank would theoretically be based in Mississauga, Ontario, but there’s no real timeline yet or any indication if the same opposition that rose quickly in the U.S. to block Wal-Mart’s bank will arise in Canada.
So what does it all really mean?
Several analysts have said so far that Wal-Mart’s entry in banking wouldn’t pose a huge threat to the Canadian banking establishment - in the near future, at least. Wal-Mart Stores already offer financial services like money transfers and cash withdrawals, but a banking license would allow the company to greatly expand what it offers. Spokesman Kevin Groh cited credit cards as an immediate first step for Wal-Mart, but also listed as possibilities “savings accounts, loans, mortgages, RSPs, GICs...”
The consensus, at least as of now, appears to be that Wal-Mart’s focus is still retail-based: rather than targeting the Canadian banking sector, it’s targeting other retailers by using the new offerings to pull in more customers and squeeze more dollars out existing store customers. (Wal-Mart Canada Andrew Pelletier said that the company doesn’t plan to open up traditional bank branches “for the foreseeable future”...)
As Wal-Mart tries to furiously expand and eat more market share in Canada, this is an edge it seems desperate for.
The Holy Grail for Wal-Mart, of course, is a bank in U.S. They’ll no doubt try again, but for now Wal-Mart will have to settle on our neighbors to the South and (they hope) North.
Wal-Mart Canadian Unit Seeks to Offer Bank Services [Bloomberg News]:
Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world’s biggest retailer, applied to the Canadian government for official bank status that would allow it to expand financial services in the country.
Wal-Mart’s Canadian unit has applied to the minister of finance to establish a bank under the name Wal-Mart Canada Bank and, in French, La Banque Wal-Mart du Canada, according to a notice posted Sept. 13 on the Canadian government’s Web site.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Eric Bull | Permalink
We all just feel bad about this one. There’s not really much more we need to say here - Wal-Mart’s actions pretty much speak for themselves. We can only offer our condolences to the poor recipient of Wal-Mart’s customer service.
Nitra Gipson sold her car to pay for her last two semesters at Texas Southern University, where she is studying criminal justice (of all things), and was paid with Wal-Mart Money Orders. When she tried to cash these money orders at her local Wal-Mart she was arrested and charged with felony forgery — even though the money orders were real.
“Humiliating is not the word for it,” Gipson told KHOU news. “I was horrified. I think they singled me out because of the amount of money that it was and (thought) I was trying to get over on them.”
Nothing she did convinced the Wal-Mart manager to drop the charges. Finally, after 48 hours behind bars, the District Attorney’s office released her after she provided the purchase receipts. You might think that was the end of Ms. Gipson’s ordeal. Nope.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt | Permalink
Wal-Mart has long been heralded as a leader in information technology. The company’s complex inventory tracking and employee scheduling systems have helped the retailer earn its record profits. It’s surprising, then, that the retailer announced today plans to outsources its financial systems.
The news comes several months after Wal-Mart was deemed “behind the curve” with its financial technology. A 2007 article from CIO.com blames Wal-Mart’s outdated information system for the company’s failure in South Korea and Germany, as well as the retailer’s past financial problems.
SAP is the lucky company tapped to take over the retail giant’s IT needs. Optimal Solutions focuses on what this means for SAP, noting that the deal will inevitably earn the systems company hundreds of millions of dollars, and not just from Wal-Mart:
This about face on packaged software represents a double win for SAP, for where the mighty Wal-Mart goes, other retailers are sure to follow.
And the process won’t be cheap. The cost of moving Wal-Mart’s massive databases promises to be expensive, and the notoriously-stingy company has decided to go ahead with the shift despite the cost. Information Age notes that the system won’t become profitable for several years. And though it’s increasingly clear that Wal-Mart’s systems need an upgrade, experts still debate the benefits of companies like SAP.
What will this mean for Wal-Mart’s other in-house systems? Will RFID soon become outmoded and cumbersome to replace.
Wal-Mart launches global IT system [Financial Times]
Posted by Alex Goldschmidt | Permalink
With little fanfare, Wal-Mart discontinued its Wal-Mart-branded debit card last week, and launched a new card with different consumer traps attributes. BloggingStock’s Brian White gives a rundown of the new card’s features, and notes that Wal-Mart is now directly competing with banks, despite claiming it’s not interested in consumer banking.
The company claims these money cards help “unbanked” consumers - those who, for whatever reason, don’t have bank accounts. But as we’ve mentioned earlier on this blog, it’s just another way that Wal-Mart hopes to profit off poverty. If Wal-Mart was really concerned with its low-income customers, maybe it could try sustainable community investment on for size.
In this week’s Wal-Mart Weekly, I’ll be looking at the entry (although indirect) of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. into the consumer banking industry. While it may seem a stretch to think that Wal-Mart’s new debit card program is anything but a way to help consumers, it could be positioning the retailer as a new banking partner for many consumers as well as adding handsomely to the retailer’s bottom line.
You have to make money to spend money
Wal-Mart recently discontinued its Wal-Mart Debit/ATM card, but has now replaced it with a newer “debit card”. What’s the difference, you ask? Let’s break it down a bit.
Read the rest of this story ...
Posted by Media Team | Permalink
View Wal-Mart Watch's videos on YouTube