Retail Marketing

Retail Marketing vs.

Cory Smith Jennifer Yarrow Alex Brenner

Costco vs. Wal-Mart Facts  

Costco is #32 on the2007 Fortune 500 Costco stores and locations: 

 

   



 

377 in the United States and Puerto Rico 71 in Canada 30 in Mexico (50-50 joint venture) 19 in the United Kingdom 5 in South Korea 6 in Japan 4 in Taiwan (One under construction)

2006 Net Sales: $60.2 Billion

Wal-Mart is #1 on the 2007 Fortune 500 Wal-Mart stores and locations: 





Wal-Mart Stores Division U.S: ~3,900 • Wal-Mart Discount Stores: 1,040 • Wal-Mart Supercenter: 2,326 • Wal-Mart Neighborhood Markets: 118 • Sam’s Club (most comparable to Costco): 584 Wal-Mart International: 2,701

2006 Net Sales: $344.9 Billion

Advertising Budget Facts  “…Advertising Age estimated global

measured advertising expenditure of $712m in 2005, making Wal-Mart the world's #42 advertiser.”  “…Costco is a $48 billion company that spends nothing on advertising and marketing.”

Retail Strategies - Costco 

Costco  “… Costco is a retail treasure hunt…”  Upscale Clientele • As a result Costco employees enjoy higher wages and better benefits than other retailers. 

Carry a limited number of products • 3,700 – 4,500 Products per warehouse



Achieve sales through volume • Costco average mark-up: 14% • “If Costco can negotiate a favorable price it will purchase a large quantity from that supplier”

Retail Strategies – Wal-Mart 

Wal-Mart  “Wal-Mart stands for low prices…”  Serve those living paycheck to paycheck. (others invited as well)  Two-thirds of Wal-Mart stores are in rural areas • “80% of Wal-Mart’s square footage is in the 25% of zip codes with the greatest number of poor households” 

Offer Variety • Wal-Mart typically carries 100,000 products, marked up ~25% on average.



Achieve sales through volume • Wal-Mart controls costs, allowing it to charge lower prices than its competitors and still maintain high profits.

Resources       

http://www.walmartfacts.com/ http://www.costco.com http://www.walmartstores.com/ NY Times Article http://www.bosslady.ca/2006/09/tips_on_defining_your_target http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costco http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walmart