Gabrielle Sartell
11/29/11
Business and Society
100-02
Is Walmart good for America? Walmart is the broadest and most powerful company in U.S. business history. What surprised me the most about the film is how Walmart's low prices have to lead to the lowest wages and to job loss. I thought low prices were good for America. I was shocked to hear that statement in the film. It was extremely surprising to hear that because I thought their low prices were a positive thing for this broad company. I believe that the strategies that Walmart is using is fair, Walmart tries hard every day to keep their low prices in order to keep their customers happy. The bar code is a tool that Walmart uses in order to track sales. It helps them decide what goods to produce in the store and the sale is recorded, then that product will be on the shelf of Walmart. The push system is another strategy which involves manufactures deciding what their going to produce and then getting retailers to buy and sell it for them. This is extremely powerful for the Walmart business. Their main strategy is to keep the prices low. This is fair because it is keeping their customers happy. New jobs that might be created as a result of outsourcing are goods like truck drivers in order to produce goods in other countries. Jobs that might be eliminated are jobs with Rubbermaid. The people who gain the most from Walmart's price policies is China. China is Walmart's supporters, China is the big emerging market for US exports and that U.S workers and also US companies could profit from the opening of trade flows with such an enormous country like China. This documentary has defiantly influenced where I will shop. Walmart is a very successful business and with their low prices and good quality of goods you can't go wrong with Walmart. China has benefited from Walmart tremendously and the migrant workers, these people benefit jobs from Walmart. Walmart has a very close relationship with China, they are joined ventures and both are determined to dominate the US economy as much as they can. Thomson has not benefited from Walmart because the plant failed by the competition and tons of jobs were lost because of China. Walmart should balance the needs for worker benefits, low prices for consumers and high profits for shareholders by doing the moral thing, by buying there low prices our economy is suffering. Walmart needs to find that medium by providing their low prices without destroying others jobs.
2 comments:
I agree, I think what Wal-Mart did to Rubbermaid was unthinkable and not good at all. Rubbermaid went from being the number one product in the industry, to having to lay off their workers and auction off their machines because Wal-Mart dropped them. Wal-Mart has the authority to make any no-name product into a power house product in just a matter of days. Personally, I do not believe in what Wal-Mart is doing, but I do not know why everyone always puts the blame on just Wal-Mart. There are many other big companies like Target, that do the exact same thing as Wal-Mart is doing but Target does not get any grief from America. Why is that? Why does everybody make a huge deal about Wal-Mart but not Target?
I agree with you that what WalMart did to Rubbermaid and other American companies is unfair due to the fact they are hurting sinking American companies. The fact that WalMart did not want to raise their prices of Rubbermaid products was extremely shocking to me because they should be willing to help or work with their vendors. WalMart is a cut throat type of corporation and they are only looking of for themselves, but I am not sure if that in an entirely bad thing. Because if you want to be successful you can not let anyone else get their way too often. Even though, I believe WalMart's outsourcing is unfair to the American people, I agree with you that it is building our relationship with China.
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