For the exclusive use of S. WANG

9-704-027
REV: JULY 20, 2004

GUNNAR TRUMBULL LOUISA GAY

Wal-Mart in Europe
“Never resist change… We have to be able to place a store or club side-by-side with the competition and beat them every time.” —!David Glass, Director and Chairman of the Board, Wal-Mart1 “In Germany, we know how retail is spelled.” —!Holger Wenzel, Director, German Retail Federation

Introduction
“What are the 10 worst things we can do to fail?”2 This was how Lee Scott, CEO of Wal-Mart, summarized Wal-Mart’s approach to working in Germany. Wal-Mart had entered the German retail market in 1997, with the acquisition of the failing German retail chain Wertkauf, and had quickly encountered problems. Wal-Mart’s EveryDay Low Price (EDLP) guarantee, inventory control, and efficient distribution strategy, so strong in the United States, had each been a source of headaches. Wal-Mart went through protracted struggles with labor unions, with suppliers, and with local zoning boards. It also weathered a major pricing scandal, had been fined for failing to return used bottles to producers, and, in a case that was on appeal at Germany’s constitutional court, faced a 330,000 euro fine for failing to release financial data for Wal-Mart Germany. This was not the first time that Wal-Mart International had run into problems with overseas expansion. It had quickly pulled out of Indonesia after a disappointing ‘test project’ in the early 1990s. Yet in most cases, time had worked in its favor. In Mexico, where it was now recognized as the country’s leading retailer, Wal-Mart had needed five years to post profits. In the United Kingdom, which Wal-Mart had entered by acquiring ASDA in 1999, it was already enjoying double-digit sales growth. Could this success be duplicated in Germany?

Wal-Mart: Brief Background
Founded by Sam Walton in 1962 in Bentonville, Arkansas,