Wal-Mart Faces Challenges As It Expands China Presence
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. opens its first outlet in China's capital Friday, marking the start of its expansion in one of China's most lucrative but competitive cities.
For the world's largest retailer, the opening of a mammoth, 18,000-square-meter Sam's Club store in a western suburb 40 minutes from downtown Beijing is a gamble on several fronts. The store, Wal-Mart's 28th in China, is a two-story emporium with a 1,300-space parking lot abutting a vast highway -- a vision straight out of Middle America but still unusual for north China. It will charge all comers an $18 annual fee to shop there, in a market unaccustomed to such high fees. And it's competing in an increasingly crowded field: China has hundreds of megastore outlets already, offering a similar mix of products at similarly competitive prices.
"There's a lot for us to learn," says Tom McLaughlin , vice president of merchandising and marketing for Wal-Mart China Co. Ltd. "But people like to save money, and people like to feel special. That's what makes the membership club successful."
Wal-Mart plans to open an additional seven stores around the country by the end of the year, bringing its total to 35 stores. Unlike in its home market, Wal-Mart's first Beijing store will target wealthier consumers, primarily those with higher education and income, many with their own cars and homes. A second Beijing store, scheduled to open at the end of 2004 or early 2005, will be a Wal-Mart Supercenter, which is generally centrally located and caters to a broader market.
A walk through the new Beijing store reveals many tweaks to suit the China market. There is a large fresh foods section -- de rigueur for Chinese supermarkets -- featuring pizza, fish swimming in tanks, and mountains of produce. A large part of the first floor is devoted to electronics -- including flat-screen televisions, personal computers, and all manner of high-tech gadgets -- to appeal to wealthier shoppers. "The U.S. stores have maybe one or two racks for electronics," says Mr. McLaughlin. Wal-Mart is also using its clout with China-based manufacturers -- the company bought $12 billion of goods from China last year -- to develop or obtain products exclusively for its China stores.
Still, Chinese consumers present many challenges. While Wal-Mart's China stores are among its busiest world-wide, spending has yet to catch up with the size of the crowds. The typical Supercenter in China racks up four times as many transactions as its U.S. counterpart -- reflecting the fact that Chinese consumers shop more often -- but the average money spent is lower, says Mr. McLaughlin. The company purchases most non-food items through a national procurement system -- a key part of its cost-cutting business model -- but buying of food is still done at the regional level to cater to local differences in taste.
Wal-Mart's more rigid corporate culture may also be a handicap to rapid growth. In China, it is playing catch-up with France's Carrefour SA, which has expanded aggressively and now has 39 stores in 20 cities. The French company had net sales of $1.2 billion in China last year and is said to be profitable. Wal-Mart doesn't disclose sales or profit figures. Carrefour is seen as more flexible while Wal-Mart is more by-the-book. For example, Wal-Mart buyers aren't permitted to have meals with suppliers, a global corporate policy to maintain integrity and contain costs but unusual in China where dining out helps grease the machinery of business.
"In the short term, Wal-Mart will not do well in China. It is just not local enough," says Gu Guojian, director of the Shanghai Chainstore Research Institute, which follows the retail industry. "But we can't rule out that Wal-Mart will win out in the future because of the strength of its systems."
沃尔玛挺进中国首都山姆会员店北京开张
周五，沃尔玛连锁公司(WAL-MART STORES Inc.)在北京的第一家连锁店开张了，由此启动了它在北京这个全国市场潜力最大、但竞争也最激烈的首都城市的扩张计划。
这家占地18,000平方米的山姆会员店位于北京西郊，离市中心约有40分钟车程。从几个方面来说，沃尔玛新店的开张都是在冒险。这家店是沃尔玛在中国的第28家超市，有一个两层楼的商场和一个有1,300个车位的停车场，这种在美国中部常见的景象在中国北方还很不寻常。根据规定，购物者必须持有年费相当于18美元的会员证，这么高的价格对中国人来说还不太常见。而中国的零售市场已大有"人"满为患之势：目前全国已有数百家大型超市，它们以相差无几的价格出售著千篇一律的商品。
沃尔玛北京分公司(Wal-Mart China Co.)负责商品销售和市场营销的副总裁汤姆?麦克劳夫林(Tom McLaughlin)说，他们还有很多东西要学。但是他说，消费者都希望省钱，并且喜欢有点与众不同，这一点正是会员制成功的基础。
沃尔玛还计划今年之内在中国再开设7家新店，这样它在中国的连锁店总数将达到35家。与它在美国的市场定位不同的是，北京的新店主要面向富裕阶层，主要是那些高学历和高收入的消费者，其中很多人都有私家车和自有住房。
沃尔玛计划2004年底或2005年初在北京开设第二家店，那将是一家面向更多普通消费者的超市，位置会选在比较靠近市中心的地方。
漫步在新开的这家会员店，你会发现，沃尔玛为了迎合中国人的消费习惯，作了很多本地化的安排。比如，店里有一个大型的生鲜食品区，里面有养在水箱里的活鱼，还有现场制作的比萨饼和各种主、副食品。
一楼店面的很大一部分是电子产品销售区，销售的商品有平面电视、个人电脑以及各种高科技的新奇玩艺，这些对有钱人应该会有吸引力。麦克劳夫林说，在美国的店里，电子产品可能也就会占一、两个货架。
沃尔玛还利用与中国制造业厂家的关系为其开发或定做专供中国消费者的产品。去年，它从中国制造商那里共采购了120亿美元的各种商品。
尽管沃尔玛作出了种种努力，但中国消费者的购物特点还是使它们的经营面临著挑战。沃尔玛在中国的连锁店是其全球连锁店里最繁忙的，但这些消费者在店里的花销远没有他们忙碌的身影那么火爆。
中国超市消费者交易量的平均水平是美国超市的4倍，这表明中国消费者购物更频繁，但他们在超市的平均开支却很低。
沃尔玛通过其全国采购系统采办大多数非食品类货品──这是其削减成本的业务模式中最关键的部分，但食品采购主要在当地进行，以照顾各地消费者的不同口味。
沃尔玛正在努力追赶其竞争对手──法国的家乐福(Carrefour SA)，家乐福在中国通过大力扩张，目前已在20个城市开设了39家连锁店。
沃尔玛称，去年它在中国的净销售额为12亿美元，分析师认为，该公司已经实现了盈利。沃尔玛没有透露在中国的销售总额和利润数字。
另一方面，沃尔玛严谨的公司文化可能也会是阻碍其迅速增长的制约因素。比如，沃尔玛不允许采购人员与供应商一起吃饭，这是该公司在全球实行的保持健康的业务关系、控制经营成本的制度之一，而请客吃饭在中国却是最常见、且必不可少的融洽业务关系的润滑剂。
上海连锁经营研究所所长(Chainstore Research Institute)顾国健说，短期内，沃尔玛在中国的业务可能不会迅速改善，但沃尔玛的整个体系毕竟有著强大的实力，不排除它将来在中国市场胜出的可能。
