Walmart Seeks to Destroy Remaining Competitors

Walmart has not only survived the recent financial crisis and global economic turmoil, but it appears poised to come out of the recession with a strong growth push, one that may spell the end a few big-name retailers. According to analysts, K-Mart and Rite Aid are on their last legs as they struggle to compete with Walmart. And although Toys R Us is still relatively stable, Walmart has already removed the other top-5 toy retailers from the marketplace.

With a new emphasis on crafts, fabrics and materials, Walmart looks ready to stomp the remaining life out of Michael’s, the craft store. All of this likely carnage is just one aspect of the new Project Impact initiative that Walmart is launching. New Walmart supercenters are opening around the country and they are being built to create a new and better shopping experience for consumers. Bucking traditional methods and tricks of the retail industry, Walmart is going for larger, wider aisles and a more intuitive store layout.

Walmart has already achieved mass appeal and a loyal customer base. Now they are addressing the issues that consumers have consistently disliked about shopping at Walmart. Things will be easier to find and time in stores should be decreased for shoppers. Walmart is "claiming" to be placing a greater emphasis on customer service as well, but we’ll have to hold our breath on that one.

Generally speaking, Project Impact is a product of investors demanding that Walmart do more to increase its stock price. But that would likely require that Walmart become more of a force in the consumer landscape. That may not be possible, as the only people not shopping at Walmart are people who really can’t stand the idea of Walmart and what it represents. Wider aisles are unlikely to change that.