Too Cheap for Its Own Good?

Is Wal-Mart Too Cheap for Its Own Good?

Comment: A good business marketing article. I'm not the shopper in our family so I am neutral on the issue. I can tell you that I would not buy clothing at Wal-Mart. I'm not sure "why" ... but that's how I feel.

Excerpt:

A confidential report prepared for senior executives at Wal-Mart Stores concludes, in stark terms, that the chain’s traditional strengths — its reputation for discounts, its all-in-one shopping format and its enormous selection — “work against us” as it tries to move upscale.

As a result, the report says, the chain “is not seen as a smart choice” for clothing, home décor, electronics, prescriptions and groceries, categories the retailer has identified as priorities as it tries to turn around its slipping store sales, a decline likely to be emphasized Friday during Wal-Mart’s shareholder meeting.

“The Wal-Mart brand,” the report says, “was not built to inspire people while they shop, hold their hand while they make a high-risk decision or show them how to pull things together.”