low prices weren't enough for korea

Wal-Mart quitting South Korea, May 22, 2006

"Wal-Mart's arrival in South Korea in 1998 triggered shock among domestic retailers. But its performance was lackluster. It posted a net loss of 9.9 billion won last year (2005) on revenue of 728.7 billion won.

"Wal-Mart and Carrefour, which entered the country in 1996, also put off South Korean consumers by sticking to Western marketing strategies that concentrated on dry goods, from electronics to clothing, while their local competitors focused on food and beverages - the main segment that experts say attracts South Koreans to hypermarkets.

"The Wal-Mart and Carrefour outlets in South Korea are simpler in appearance than those of E-Mart and other competitors, which tend to be more stylish and luxurious. Wal-Mart and Carrefour sold products by the box, while E-Mart and Lotte constructed eye-catching displays and hired sales clerks who hawked their goods with megaphones and hand-clapping."

Wal-Mart's overseas push can be lost in translation, August 2, 2006

"Some of Wal-Mart's missteps - selling golf clubs in Brazil, where the game is unfamiliar, or ice skates in Mexico - have become the stuff of urban legend. But even more subtle differences in shopping habits have tripped up the company. In South Korea, Wal-Mart's stores originally had taller racks than those of local rivals, forcing shoppers to use ladders or stretch for items on high shelves. Wal-Mart's utilitarian design -- ceilings with exposed pipes -- put off shoppers accustomed to the decorated ceilings in E-Mart stores.

"They have stacks of goods in boxes," said Lee Jin Sook, 46, a housewife traveling by metro in Seoul. "That may be good for some American housewives who drive out in their own cars." But Koreans, she said, prefer smaller packages: "Why would you buy a box of shampoo bottles?"