Walmart Vs. Nordstrom: A Strategic Comparison Kashyap Pd. Marahatta BUS 525 Strategic Management in a Globalized Society Professor: Dr. Marko Nino Westcliff University 23/04/2017 Abstract This paper will discuss about the strategic management and try to put some focus on the importance of strategic management for a business. In doing so, this paper will discuss about two large retail business and try to compare and contrast the strategic management of those two companies. Walmart Vs. Nordstrom: A strategic comparison In simple understanding, strategic management refers to managing the resources so as to achieve the desired objectives and goals of an organization. In broader terms, it can be understood as a continuous process which …show more content…
In doing so, this paper discussed about Wal-mart and Nordstrom, the two largest retail businesses and compared and contrasted the strategic management of those two companies. References Collins, J. C., & Porras, J. I. (1996). Building Your Company’s Vision. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/1996/09/building-your-companys-vision Miller, D. (1992). The Generic Strategy Trap. Journal of Business Strategy, 37-41. Linsu, K., & Linn, Y. (1988). Environment, Generic Strategies and Performance in a Rapidly Developing Country: A Taxonomic Approach. Analysis of Management Journal, 802-827. Mohammed, R. (2015). How Wal-mart Can Start Competing Online. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2015/10/how-walmart-can-start-competing-online Porter, M. E. (2008). Competotive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors. Simon & Schuster. Watkins, M. D. (2007). Demystifying Strategy: The What, Who, How, and Why. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from
The evolution of Wal-mart from the early 1960s to the present day has set a benchmark that few can achieve. Wal-mart executives have been successful nationally as well as globally. The knowledge and expertise in economics have made Wal-mart a global giant. The research completed is the final recommendations by the members of research team C and will address questions regarding global competition and issues of the organizations ability to expand or reduce current operations.
Walmart is one of the biggest companies in the world, but it also has extremely tough competitors. Currently Walmart is the largest retailer in most countries of the world for numerous reasons. For one, they supply a wide variety of items to be purchased that include entertainment, groceries, health and wellness, hardware, furnishing, apparel and many more. Walmart also has over 11,100 stores in over 27 countries according to Market Realist. These two reasons alone give Walmart a huge advantage over its’ competitors. Walmart has both strengths and weaknesses when it comes to its’ competitors not only across the nation, but across the world as well. Some of the main domestic competitors of Wal-mart consist of Target, Costco, Amazon, and the dollar store trinity. Along with that, Walmart has international competition such as Carrefour in France, Metro in Germany, Tesco in the United Kingdom, Loblaw Companies in Canada, and Ahold in the Netherlands. Although Walmart has competitors with all of these companies worldwide, it still remains the “#1 retailer in Canada and Mexico and has operations in Asia (where it owns a 95% stake in Japanese retailer SEIYU ), Africa, Europe, and Latin America”, according to Hoovers. Strangely enough, Walmart is growing more overseas than it is in the United States. Even with all these companies it has to compete with, Wal-mart’s total sales are still almost 5 times its’ competitors. As it generates a net sale of over $483 billion in one year,
One of the largest retailer in the United States is known to many of us as Wal-Mart; boasting over 3,500 domestic stores in the United States, with continued growth in their numbers…and about 1,300 locations in Canada, Mexico, the UK (only Western), Germany, Asia and South America (Mergent). Many of these stores include Supercenters, Sam’s Clubs, and smaller Neighborhood Market centers. Wal-Mart primary focus is on based on six strategic merchandise units: grocery, entertainment, hardlines, health and wellness, apparel, and items for the home (Mergent). Since the begininning of the company in 1962, Wal-Mart has skillful continued growth and prosperity. With their long standing history of profitability and prominence thoughout North
Undra, Wal-Mart is an interesting company to choose for this discussion. Consequently, in my opinion, it is probably one the best companies that could have been chosen for this exercise. First, Wal-Mart is a pulverizing competitor in the retail world, with good reason. Honestly, I believe that both economic scope (combining multiple product lines) and scale (one product line) could apply to Wal-Mart. Nevertheless, whenever I see a new Wal-Mart being built next to a Food Lion or Kmart, I feel sorry for them. However, I will be the first to admit that if I stop at a store other than Wal-Mart, my first thought is usually, I wonder if this is cheaper at Wal-Mart. Consequently, Wal-Mart’s massive size allows it to maintain quite a few advantages
With regards to Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Porter 's five forces structure can be utilized to examine the intensity of Wal-Mart 's industry. Wal-Mart’s changed from a little chain of markdown stores to the world’s biggest retailer. Wal-Mart’s transformation from a small chain of discount stores in Arkansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma in 1970 to the world’s largest retailer was one of the most remarkable corporate success stories of the 20th century (Grant, 2008, p.57). Wal-Mart works in the retail business which is tremendous, growing, and greatly aggressive. Wal-Mart operates in a conventional range of markdown retailing. In its traditional area of discount retailing, Target was proving an increasingly formidable competitor, while several of the rivals that Wal-Mart had believed it had crushed – Kmart, Sears, and JC Penney – were being revitalized by new management (Grant, 2008, p.58). Wal-Mart’s fundamental rival is Target however different companies include Kmart, Sears, and JC Penney. Target may be the greatest competition for Wal-Mart since they both keep growing in the same market. Wal-Mart’s success had been based on a strategy that emphasized a few key components: commitment to “everyday low prices,” responsiveness to customer needs, matchless logistics supported by leading-edge IT, committed employees, and unremitting cost cutting founded on a culture of frugality (Grant, 2008, p.58). The risk of new entrants could incorporate food merchants on the off chance that
Wal-Mart is the largest and most innovative company in the world, grossing annual revenue of $430 billion dollars and maintains stores internationally. Although it has seen its success in areas of customer service, it currently sees the negative impact that anti-corporation groups and lawsuits can have on profits. Although these problems would amount to a sufficient issue, an even bigger issue facing Wal-Mart today is the consistent approaching threat of competition with fellow rivals such as the stores Kmart, Target, and the practicality of Dollar stores. Everything from wage rates, prices, economy, technology, etc., has been affected by Wal-Mart’s success. Although the threat of competition does not outweigh the overall success that
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is known as the largest retail company in the World. It holds the top spot in Fortune Magazine’s Fortune 500 Index of largest corporations. Operating under 3 segments: Wal-Mart U.S., Wal-Mart International, and Sam’s Club, it boasts plentiful market share domestically and internationally. The company focuses on 4 main priorities. Those being store formats, technology deployment, human capital, and internationalization. Although they have been the world leader in all four categories, they must stay ahead of the competition if they wish to maintain their stronghold on the market.
The ultimate way to define itself in a competitive market, a corporation must have a competitive tactic to survive. A competitive tactic is a tool that the firm can use to compete with rivals and succeed eventually. Examples of competitive tactics are price leaders, product differentiation, price and differentiation focus, timing tactics, and market location tactics (Mitchell, n.d.). Today this essay will analyze the competitive tactic of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the retail giant of America. Furthermore, a SWOT analysis will be performed on the company to understand its internal and external environment, and finally a new competitive tactic that it should attempt will be formulated.
In this paper we will be discussing how Wal-Mart has attempted to conduct international business. We will go over two markets that Wal-Mart entered and identify the fizzler and sizzler. We will discuss what went into Wal-Marts marketing strategy for each market, what worked and what failed. In this paper we will share Wal-Mart’s background, give you a SWOT analysis, talk about their 4P’s to success, and any considerations Wal-Mart may want to think about expanding into new markets. In the background we will discuss what has made Wal-Mart into the U.S. power house that it is today, and why they might wish to expand to new markets. We will also go over the Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that Wal-Mart is currently facing.
Walmart has always been considered a powerhouse in the retail business world. It is encouraging to read the story about how Walmart started as a small store in one location but now Walmart has grown to over 11,000 stores worldwide. There is no mistaking that Walmart has shown itself to be a business that has grown to the ranks of empire among retail. With net earnings of more than $482 billion and a staff of more than 2.2million associates worldwide (Walmart, 2016), Walmart has squashed its competitors and created a category all its own. These successes can be contributed to Walmart’s’ exemplary external and internal business environment and their ability to construct a masterful business and corporate level strategy.
Online shopping has become a war zone for Walmart and Amazon. In the past Amazon was the leader in online sales however, now it is close to the holidays and Walmart is gaining on Amazon. Has online shopping changed the way we look at Walmart or has the economy changed the way we shop. Walmart has given their clients new ways to shop and what they shop for.
“Strategic management is the comprehensive collection of ongoing activities and processes that organizations use to systematically coordinate and align resources and actions with mission, vision and strategy throughout an organization” (Strategic management, n.d)
This case is an overall analysis of research and strategy making in one of the biggest retail stores in US: Wal-Mart. It’s mission statement says it all:
Thompson, Arthur A., Strickland A. J., Gamble, John E. (2010). Crafting and Executing Strategy. McGraw-Hill Irwin. (Ed.) Boston
The five generic competitive strategies have become some of the most used competitive strategies in contemporary corporate management. Michael E. Porter (1980) described competitive strategy as“… being different. It means deliberately choosing to perform activities differently or to perform different activities than rivals to deliver a unique mix of value”.