Analysis of Wal-Mart with Target as Competitor

Paper Summary:

This paper presents a competitive analysis that thoroughly evaluates Target as a competitor of Wal-Mart. The paper focuses specifically on the areas of depth of assortment, brand variety and appeal, dispersion of brands across a pricing spectrum, consistency of inventory, pricing (both execution and optimization), and overall rating of performance. The paper concludes with key recommendations for Wal-Mart at a tactical level from a product, pricing, and distribution standpoint. Graphs, tables, and charts are included with the paper.

Outline:
Current Situation
Company Overview
Competitor Analysis
Performance of the Company & Organization
Assessment of Current Marketing Operations
Strategic Marketing Issues
Tactical Marketing Issues

From the Paper:

"Due to the breadth of businesses that Wal-mart is in, including the many different retail and service lines, the company has an abundance of competitors. The majorities are smaller, regionally focused, and as a result there is a high level of fragmentation throughout their base of competitors. Contrary to this fragmentation however is the emergence of Target in the U.S., Canada and Mexico as the most dominant competitor in the mass merchandising arena. The intent of this competitive analysis is to thoroughly evaluate Target as a competitor of Wal-Mart, specifically in the areas of depth of assortment, brand variety and appeal, dispersion of brands across a pricing spectrum, consistency of inventory, pricing (both execution and optimization), and overall rating of performance. Figure 1, Key Attribute Summary, highlights the ratings given to each company, across the years 2005 and 2006 by investment and equity analysts. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• AMR Research (2007) - Global 25 Supply Chains Analysis. Analysis of the top performing supply chains globally. Accessed from the Internet on August 14, 2007 from location:http://www.amrresearch.com/supplychaintop25/
• Blair & Company, (2007) - Target Companies/Wal-Mart Corporation. William Blair and Company Equity Research. April 2, 2007. Mark Miller, CFA. Accessed through EBSCO Host.
• Datamonitor (2005) - Datamonitor Research (2005, Reference 1935). Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (Company Profile). New York, NY
• Kotler P., (2003) "Marketing Management eleventh edition" Prentice Hall. Basking Ridge, NJ.
• Porter (1980) - Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors. New York: Free Press, 1980. (Republished with a new introduction, 1998.)

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