Sad Times for Wal-Mart

For the first time in a decade, Wal-Mart has seen a decline in its profits; this does not mean that the House Sam Walton Built is suffering from a shortfall. The retailing giant has just seen a decrease in total profits. First of all, I think it is simply amazing that such a big company can continually increase their profits for 10 years even after going through a recession. Now back to the point. Some "experts" are saying this is one of many weary signs for the national retailers gearing up for a crucial holiday season. Wal-Mart, however, says there is nothing to worry about. The company still met Wall Street expectations. They are also in the middle of a massive 1800 store remodeling project (including Jeff City's) aimed at making them "more attractive," which would of course disrupt sales in the short-term. They also recently sold their money-losing operations in Germany and South Korea. One big fat cat that CEO Scott Lee points to is the rising gas prices; people are making less trips to save gas and are cutting back on spending so they can drive to work. We will just have to wait and see how that big smiley does in upcoming quarters. By the way, I think this whole remodeling thing is a big crack (like they don't have money any to spare); my local Jeff City Wal-Mart is spending $4 million in renovations, but the thing is uglier and items are not arranged well. That is $4 million of money down the crapper to make this small store worse. I can only imagine how much they are spending on to remodel larger stores. I must keep a good attitude, though; I'll just have to again wait and see how it turns out when finished. Sorry for the rambling. (story here)

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