Wal-Mart

_ Teamsters Leader Says Retailer Contributes To Economic Woes WASHINGTON, July 20, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa today issued the following statement about the White House event recognizing retailers that expand in underserved communities: (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100127/IBTLOGO) "I admire First Lady Michelle Obama for her work to improve the lives of American children. However, we are very concerned that companies like Wal-Mart, which don't pay their workers a decent wage, condemn children in this country to poverty, poor nutrition and shrinking prospects for their futures. "Wal-Mart's CEO recently commented that the company's shoppers are 'running out of

Forrester Research Analyst Sucharita Mulpuru was on hand at the Retail Email Exchange symposium in San Diego last month to offer best practices for four current trends in the e-commerce space. Looking to debunk conventional wisdom, Mulpuru advised that things often turn out to be different than they initially appear. With that in mind, here are the four trends that Mulpuru addressed:

Cape Town, South Africa -- A Tuesday report by Bloomberg said that South Africa’s parliament will let anti-trust regulators decide what conditions to impose on Wal-Mart Stores in its acquisition of Massmart Holdings Ltd. The Competition Tribunal ruled on May 31 that Wal-Mart could proceed with its $2.4 billion purchase of a controlling stake in Johannesburg-based wholesaler Massmart on condition no jobs are cut for two years. The tribunal’s decision is being appealed by the South African Commercial, Catering and Allied Workers Union in the Competition Appeal Court.

For the former child stars and current fashion entrepreneurs, one project at a time is never enough: in addition to their successful The Row label and Wal-Mart fashion range, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have launched their new online venture StyleMint.

The usual suspects top this year's National Retail Federation's list of the 100 biggest retailers. But giants like Wal-Mart, Kroger and Target need to be on the lookout for two nontraditional retailers that could threaten their coveted spots.

Wal-Mart employs more than 2 million people and controls about 13.4 percent of the consumer market in the U.S. But Amazon controls one-third of e-commerce sales in the U.S. and could put up a fight.

Wal-Mart has signed an agreement with the Shanghai government to establish an e-commerce headquarters in the city as part of its online strategy to gain a greater share of the country's burgeoning retail market.

Foursquare has surpassed the 10-million user mark, and the check-in site collected a number of facts about itself to complement the announcement. Target, Wal-Mart and Macy's have been noted as the most popular retail chains on the site.

Wal-Mart Canada announced that it's entered into an agreement with Target Canada to assume the leasehold interests in up to 39 sites currently operated by Zellers Inc. Specific locations will be identified later this fall. Terms of this transaction weren't disclosed.

Wal-Mart has spent 10 years fighting claims that it discriminated against female employees, but the Supreme Court victory for the company may not mean the end to litigation over discrimination claims.