Walmart news 

Attending an industry event in Montreal this week, provided an opportunity to hear directly from three grocery CEOs in Canada; Couche-Tard’s Alain Bouchard, Sobeys’ Marc Poulin and Walmart’s Shelley Broader. What did these leaders have to say about growth and differentiation? Sobeys growing the business through acquisition With a focus on driving growth in an era of disruptive change, Sobeys’...

In the fourth of this year's regular updates, we look at the main developments at Carrefour, Tesco, Metro and Walmart, and assess priorities for the rest of the year. Carrefour in confident mood Carrefour reported net sales growth of 1.4% in the first half , and a 2.7% increase for Q3 . All formats in the key French market posted growth in the third quarter, and international sales...

Key highlights including ecommerce, senior management appointments and store strategy following Scott Price's update at Walmart's annual investors meeting last week. Store network rationalisation In order to maximise returns from its strongest assets, Walmart plans to close 3m square feet of space in China, equating to between 2.5%-3% of sales, and more than 20 stores. This move will...

Massmart’s chief executive, Grant Pattison, said that South Africa’s shoppers were under growing pressure on the sidelines of the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa summit. Slower spending due to a number of reasons Pattison was quoted as saying: “ The pressure on the consumer is increasing and it seems to be related to rising energy inflation and unsecured lending being pulled back .” Th...

At its annual investors meeting this week, Walmart provided an update on the strategic priorities for its US stores operation, Sam’s Club, international, global e-commerce and the business as a whole. We outline the key takeaways from this important update. Building a unique market-based ecosystem in the US to capitalise on in-fill opportunities Walmart has identified a number of markets i...

Walmart has announced plans for a new market ecosystem for the US which will see it leverage its broad store portfolio in local markets to maximise in-fill opportunities to drive sales growth. Capitalising on in-fill opportunities through smaller formats Walmart has identified a number of markets where opportunities exist for it to grow sales in local markets through building a network of sm...

US-based Walmart and Bharti have agreed to dissolve their joint venture in India, a step that will see each retailer to ‘independently own and operate separate business formats in India’. Decision sees end of franchise agreement Following the dissolution of the joint venture, which will be completed by Walmart buying out Bharti’s stake, Walmart will be left to run the Best Price Modern Whol...

Walmart considers acquisition in order to become the first or second player in the cities it operates in, reports The Wall Street Journal. Considering acquisitions to build regional strength Speaking at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation conference in Indonesia, Walmart Asia's CEO Scott Price outlined that the company was considering acquisitions in China to build its regional market s...

Walmart is expected to postpone its investment decision in Cedar Support Service as it continues to seek clarity on FDI policy. Postponing the decision to build on Bharti relationships Walmart first entered the Indian market in 2007 through a joint venture with Bharti Enterprises to open BestPrice Modern Wholesale cash and carry stores. A second dimension was added to the Bharti relations...

Walmart.com Brazil is to develop a new 53,500 sq m distribution centre in São Paulo, constructed by Prologis. Wider acceleration of e-commerce plans for Walmart The facility will be tailored to Walmart's needs. It will be located on Prologis' Cajamar II site to the north-west of São Paulo, close to the Anhanguera Highway which gives access to the ring road and to central São Paulo. Walma...