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WAL-MART AND THE ‘POORING OF AMERICA’
I’m not sure where the phrase “Pooring of America” came from, but it’s perfect to explain Wal-Mart’s effect on working families. Seeking Alpha ponders why Wal-Mart and McDonald’s are doing so well right now.

What are McDonald’s and Wal-Mart Telling Us? [Seeking Alpha]

I am very intriqued by our top 2 choices for the “Pooring of America” trend - Walmart (WMT) and McDonalds (MCD) - what exactly are the charts above telling us?  If we are to enter a long drawn-out recession, which I have believed, these seem to be screaming buys here. The only question is credit - how does a lack of credit potentially hurt both. They are not expanding a ton, in the U.S. at least - perhaps with Wal-mart it’s financing of inventory, but I cannot wrap my mind around this behavior.

Wal-Mart gets downgraded while stock up in 2008 amid the turmoil [BloggingStocks]

Will Wal-Mart weather the storm? To a point, it already is. Sure, all retailers are expected to have a dismal holiday season this winter, but Wal-Mart will do better than the competition. It has more stores, more pricing leverage and more wherewithal to hold customers hostage with lower prices and inventory turns at a time when it’s needed most. Perhaps we’ll see WMT return to the $60/share level by Thanksgiving—if not sooner.

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Maybe in some parallel universe - where marketers are kings and consumers buy everything that’s advertised - this strategy makes sense, but we just can’t seem to understand how holding a fashion show is supposed to send the message that Wal-Mart is no longer interested in fashion.

See, Wal-Mart has had a lot of problems with its apparel lines. When it sold basic (read: ugly) clothes like high-waisted jeans and shapeless t-shirts, no one bought them because they were, well, ugly. So then Wal-Mart started selling “trendy” items like spandex leggings. Unsurprisingly, the spandex leggings didn’t sell either and Wal-Mart vowed to never go upscale again.

So the retailer’s recent fashion show in San Francisco’s supertrendy Union Square doesn’t seem to make sense. Is Wal-Mart planning to roll out a line of leather mini dresses just in time for back to school? If not, what’s the value retailer doing with the likes of high end designers?

Wal-Mart’s fashion show previews back-to-school [Reuters]

Wal-Mart Stores Inc presented a colorful, casual line of youthful looks for kids and teens on Saturday at a fashion show that previewed the mass-market chain’s new low-cost offerings for back to school.

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