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| India-Pakistan |
| No Wal-Mart tag for their stores in India |
| 2007-02-18 |
| NEW DELHI: World's largest retailer Wal-Mart may be upbeat over its grand foray into India despite political hurdles, but its high-profile brand name may take a miss at the front-end retail stores in the country. According to sources close to the US firm, the hundreds of retail outlets that Wal-Mart plans to open in India in Partnership with Bharti over the next five years might not carry the Wal-Mart name at all. A Wal-Mart spokesperson in India said the front-end stores would be 100 per cent owned and operated by Bharti, while the US firm would focus on back-end operations like logistics and other supply chain management. As for branding of the front-end stores, the spokesperson said it was for Bharti to decide. When contacted, a Bharti official said the company was conducting consumer research and evaluating options at present and a decision regarding the brand name would be taken in due course of time. However, sources indicated that the US major was open to the idea of giving the Wal-Mart brand a miss at the front-end store level, as it might further fuel the political opposition centred on concerns about a foreign company impacting the home-grown small retail stores. Bharti group is likely to unveil the strategic roadmap for the business on Monday, while a high-profile team of the US giant, which could also include its CEO Michael T Duke, is also expected in India next week. |
| Posted by:John Frum |
| #3 If it's cargo you want Wal-Mart got it. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2007-02-18 11:54 |
| #2 Muslims protest against FDI in retail Just when they appeared to have weathered class-based protests, economic reforms are facing a new kind of opponent: a community-based mobilisation led by Muslim clerics. A move seems to be on to organise the clerics to protest against SEZs and FDI in retail saying that they marked a serious threat to the existence of "15 crore poor of the community". Haji Yaqoob Qureshi, estranged minister in Mulayam Singh Yadav ministry, who rose as community leader after offering Rs 51 crore booty on the head of theDanish cartoonists, was the chief guest, as Maulanas and community leaders lectured the gathered youngsters from madrassas on the threat of FDI. Speeches harped on the theme that SEZs and FDI in retail, as symbolised by the moves by the US giant Wal-Mart to enter India, marked a real threat to the livelihood of small Muslim traders who account for quite a big share of the community's population. The appeal against FDI is being fused with anti-US sentiment among Muslims to mobilise the community. Shabbir Ahmed, who teaches in a madrassa, said if US companies were allowed entry, they will not only kill small retailers but also create social behaviour which leads to troubles. |
| Posted by: John Frum 2007-02-18 09:56 |
| #1 The real Indian PM was written to the official PM.. Sonia writes to PM: Tread cautiously on FDI in retail The caution came in the form of a letter from her to PM Manmohan Singh, asking the government to take into account the implications that these transnational giants could have on neighbourhood kirana stores, a business news channel reported on Monday. "I have received suggestions from many quarters about the desirability to first study the possible impact of transnational supermarkets on livelihood security of those engaged in small scale operations... I thought I would convey this to you so that you may consider having the relevant issues properly examined before further decisions are taken," the channel quoted Gandhi as saying. |
| Posted by: John Frum 2007-02-18 09:54 |