Wal-Mart became the No,One Corporation and also No.1 largest retailer store in the world more than 4 tears ago.Last year they had sales of $350 billion, employing thousands of people all over the globe. By their coming, small retailers stil have a place in the consumer market. Wal Mart can have stores only in big cities and not in every bazar or lanes. There are thousands of small retailers in villages and small towns. Is it not ridiculous to think people in rural areas walk miles to go and shop in Wal Mart. Allbig cities and towns in India are overcrowded with people, cars, buses, trucks and bullock carts etc. There is no parking space for vehicles in big cities. This fact itself makes people buy from the corner grocery store. Indians have developed personal relations wiyth small stores, many of whom give discounts, credits, home delivry and serve them with a smile. Seven Eleven Shops all over USA are still doing good business and serving the nearby clients from 7.00 AM to 11.00 PM. Additionally, Wal Mart with its innovative marketing techniques and supply chain logistics offers Every Day Low Prices. An average consumer family of sayt 5 people in a middle income group may save over Rs. 5 to 10,000 per annum.Because, we are saved the huge prifits middlemen make. True, a few small stores may vanish in the neighbourhood of Wal Mar. All big MNCs which have come to India have thrown out many small vendors and factories out of job. Globalization also has done it. But the nation as a awhole has gained enormous economic benefits. Even today there are over 10 million bullock carts in service in India. Have cars, buses and trucks and jet planes made them redundent? Both exist side by side mand will be there for many more years. Big 5-star and 7 star hotels have come You are also seeing many new hundreds of small hotels coming up and making monney.Let us not be blind for the transformation in the living styles of people taking place all over ther world. India is no exception. Both big and small are beautiful!
RE:Give Wal-Mart a Chance for 5 years!
by aditya andley on Apr 24, 2007 06:43 AM Permalink
Mr Krishnamurthy, Let me tell you why K-Mart should NOT enter India. Reason 1 is Economic: As a consumer (you may not realise) without Wal-Mart you have umpteen choice of where to buy your foodstuff from. And u pointed rightly, you have developed some sort of relationship with this seller. Wal-Mart entry will undoubtly drastically reduce your CHOICE as a customer- of where you can buy your stuff from. Small business will not be able to sustain. Reason no. 2 is equity: Considering our huge diversiy only a certain class of people (middle-rich) will be able to buy their stuff from Wal-Mart. 'Co-existence' as you pointed out is healty when things exist together in the same place rahter than spatially different places. Why should certain areas of the city look like fancy Wal-marts and others as decrepit, run-down places of small-businesses? We mut aspire for socially equitable places - where all types of people are welcome. This currently happens on our streets where hakers etc. provide for all setions of society. Reason no. 3 is Evironmental: Superstores like Wal-Mart will consume high amount of power in their air-conditoned mega-boxes. Compare that with samll shops like Mother Dairy food/grocery outlets or hawkers which do the same job in a much more environment friendly way. Moreover superstores encourage driving to them rather twalking as you currenly do. In the est, communitie are trying to do the dificult job of get small businesss work. And sm to be going in the opposite direction- not leaning from their mistakes. Big and small is beautiful but unfortunately they belong to opposite ends of the societal power structure.
