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Wal-Mart Opens Supercenter

Wal-Mart plans opened another new 18,000-square-metre "Supercenter" in Shanghai on July 25, the first of three it plans to open in Shanghai, according to China Daily.

Since it came to Chinese market in 1996, Wal-Mart has launched nine stores in the Huadong area, one-fifth of Wal-Mart's stores in China. It's anticipated that by the end of 2005, Wal-Mart will open seven more stores, increasing its stores in China to 55.

Wal-Mart Stores Incorporated's first store in the city is expected to create a stir in the local retail market.

"There's no doubt that Wal-Mart's Pudong store will affect our business, because we are so close. But we will learn from it and compete," spokeswoman Xiang Jun of the Lotus Supercentre chain said.

But Wal-Mart will also face stiff competition from two major competitors in the Shanghai market, the Brilliance Group and French retailer Carrefour S. A. The two dominate the city's current 100-strong large store market. The Brilliance Group, China's largest retail conglomerate, which owns Hualian Supermarket, Hualian GMS supermarket, the Lianhua chain and others, has a large share of the local retail market.

Wal-Mart is using its "lower prices of goods everyday" to counter; it has also opened eight free bus routes, including two from Puxi to Pudong to lure more consumers from the west side of the Huangpu River.