Question

Discuss three specific reasons why Wal Mart is failing in Japan?

Answer 1

According to reports and analysis, Walmart is failing in Japan. Here are the three reasons why:

1) Walmart totally failed to understand the preferences of the local market and the country it was operating in. Every country has a different culture and Walmart didn't take this into account. for eg - Japanese like to buy fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables which Walmart, unfortunately, didn't offer. moreover, an average Japanese shopper was confused with the everyday low prices. the japanese are more on the lookout for specific deals and sales.

2) Walmart is facing a stiff comptetion with the local giants and is losing the battles. the local retail supermarket enjoy people's trust and attract far more customers than walmart. although this problem is not only faced by walmart but all the international stores like Tesco and Carrefour which try to operate in Japan get tough competition from the local stores.

3) Walmart didn't offer anything new to the local japanese people in the form of the shopping experience. for eg, Costco, another American store is thriving in Japan due to its sale of products in bulk which is a new concept in Japan and so the Japanese love to try this whole new shopping expeience of buying things in bulk. unfortunately, Walmart was too much like other japanese stores and didn't offer anything new to its customers.