Wal-Mart Pharmacy is a Discount Pharmacy, and a discount pharmacy is considered a brick and mortar pharmacy. According to Investopedia (2010) describes brick and mortar to a conventional public business that distribute with its customers face to face in an office or store that the business owns or rents. Web-based businesses compared to brick-and-mortar usually cost lower and greater flexibility for operations. By Wal-Mart being a discount pharmacy it is able to sell its products and services at reduced prices through the use of operating productive use of resources and the elimination of pointless services for customers that self pay for their medicines. Wal-Mart does not take insurance payments that will interrupt their cash flow.
Wal-Mart has been able to grow their economies of scale b selling larger quantities of medicines with less labor require per order. Many of the American people are on continuous prescription for their medicine, this trend will lend itself to rapid growth as customer can mail order larger quantities of drugs that they will need over time. In addition, a lot of insurance companies recommend an economic incentive for medicine to be purchased by mail in quantity, discount the insurance company money. Wal-Mart also looks at this factor as a boost to their profitability.
Wal-Mart increases its market share through targeted advertising this allows them to increase the number of customers who are looking to save money on a pricey, necessary expense.
The discount pharmacy is in the first year of business as a start-up operation. Wal-Mart believes that the market demand for their services will be great and are convinced that the cohesive marketing strategy is required for Wal-Mart Pharmacy. Wal-Mart offers a wide range of prescription medicine for pick up at their store front or it can be distributed by mail. The Pharmacy's prices are far better than most pharmacies so their services will be attractive for people that just need to buy their medicine at good prices and do not need their hands held during the process of purchasing their medicines.
Economic Projections
Strengths
Looking at the strengths of Wal-Mart their focus should be on what is accurate and what is unsuitable in their company. The strength of Wal-Mart is the loyalty they have formed with their customer and employee foundation. The foundation is tremendously trustworthy. They have accomplished trustworthiness because they have established good customer service for the customers, immense cost of something bought or sold for the products they sell. Then they do business in countries that are many times overlooked by other retailers. Then for Wal-Mart employees there are flexible hours, competitive salary, health insurance and discounts for their purchases.
Dependable clientele
Great pricing
Location is wonderful
Great benefits for employees who are full time workers
Weaknesses
The weakness that Wal-Mart has is that they need to keep their pricing to a minimum and they need to purchase in bulk. These can lead to their inventory being unpredictable. However, so a consumer who do not purchase in bulk form may have to purchase the larger quantity, because Wal-Mart do not have it in smaller purchases. Another weakness that occurs with Wal-Mart is that they usually hire only part time employees.
Have large inventories
Quit buying America
Consumers do not have many sizes to choose from
The employees have not benefits because they are part time workers
Because Wal-Mart put small businesses out of business they are hated by many small businesses
Sales products from other countries with unmerited labor laws
Opportunities
Wal-Mart finish only where their originality ends. Wal-Mart should be looking into their future and get better with their observation. America shoppers are obsessed by price tag however that is now starting to change.
Develop local communities awareness
Influence Federal Government for tax breaks and incentives
Support fair trade and human labor laws
Do work in other countries
Threats
Wal-Green has put competition on Wal-Mart becoming Wal-Mart biggest competitors because there is a buying and selling competition between them. There is also a drive to get Wal-Mart employees to organize workers into a labor union, which will have a wave outcome all the way throughout the company.
Current economy
Excise taxes
Employee unions
Warehouse retailers like Costco
Trend Analysis
According to Lichtenstein (2008) the quantitative dimensions are staggering: annual sales of over $300 billion, 5,000 stores, and 1.5 million employees worldwide. It imports more goods from China than the United Kingdom and is the larger private sector employer in Canada, Mexico, and the US, and also said, qualitatively, its impact can be found in its labor policies, its application of information technology to centralize control over inventories and global supply chains, its reorganization of the urban landscape, and its redefinition of the culture of consumerism.
"Emphasizes the historical continuity from earlier retailers to Wal-Mart. Chain stores like Sears, Woolworth's, and A&P lured households away from shopkeepers down the street on much the same business model (fixed prices, rapid turnover, and low overhead) and also made use of new technologies to change the whole set of principles of sharing. Not surprisingly, then, opposition to early mass merchandisers, fundamental on their inferior working requirements, the concentration of riches that mass marketers represented, and the need to sustain local economies, take much of the same criticism as opposition to Wal-Mart does today" (Strasser, 2008).
One side or part of Wal-Mart perception not adequately stated in several different works together is the wide range of legal, political, and economic surrounding influence that has made Wal-Mart possible. With the wide spread activity that is based on minimum wage, huge turnover worker policies are obviously only possible if general supply and demand with a particular state of repair or ability to function with a union legislation to make certain that a unchanged or uninterrupted supply of employees are available at minimum wages. In regards, many employees achieve greater social prominence with temporary and part-time work, outsourcing, and the increase in undocumented immigrants in the US, and the rise of contingent work, all of which make unions more difficult and too difficult. A more in-depth talk of economic and predict that the surroundings that have allowed Wal-Mart's labor unfair treatment or use to keep going, therefore there would have been giving information, particularly in light of a contention that mass retailers are "driving force of American inequality" (Lichtenstein, 2008).
Competition
Wal-Mart has been shocking the fearful urban area stores absurdly low prices of their medicine, and other items such as milk, toys, and the recession forcing legions of stores into bankruptcy, the world's largest retailer now apparently wants to take out the remaining survivors (Gregory, 2009).
The company is in the beginning stage of a massive doter and strategy remodeling to fix the cluttering stores that will improve shopping experience. Another is a reminder that Wal-Mart has friendlier customer service. A third: home in on categories where the competition can be killed. Wal-Mart has K-Mart ready to take a standing eight-count the coming year. Wal-Mart has already knocked out four of the top five competitions in the toy retailer group, now they seek to go after Toys "R" Us (Flickinger, 2009).
According to Gregory (2009) though it is bad news for many smaller businesses that cannot compete, Wal-Mart investors have clamored for this push. Despite the company's consistently strong financial performance, Wall Street has not cheered Wal-Mart's growth rates. During the 1990s, the company's stock price jumped 1,173%. In this decade, it's down around 24% (Wal-Mart's stock closed at $51.74 per share on September 3).
"Wal-Mart is under excruciating pressure from employees and frustrated institutional investors to get the stock up," (Flickinger, 2009).
despite the fact that the recession as a final point caught up to Wal-Mart last quarter, when the company reported a 1.2% drop in U.S. same-store sales, Wal-Mart was a constant winner for the duration of the worst days of the financial crisis, as penny-pinching customers traded down. Because of Wal-Mart many retailers are closing down their stores, since then Wal-Mart has opened 52 Supercenters since February 1st (Feldman).
Feldman (2009) has giving estimates for each store that has cost Wal-Mart between $25 and $30 million. In order to keep up the momentum that it has gained during the trade downturn, Wal-Mart will be doing some remodeling over the next five years the company plans to remodel 70% of its approximately 3,600 U.S. stores.
The mission statement states that Wal-Mart mission is to enhance and integrate our supplier diversity programs into all of our procurement practices and to be an advocate for minority and women-owned businesses" (Sam Walton).
Problems and Opportunities
Wal-Mart's attempts to sustain its growth during the past few years, however, have been met with enormous challenges and setbacks. Its same-store sales numbers are down, its same-store sales numbers are down, its stock is flat, its growth has leveled off and it is continuously plagued by self-inflicted public relations problems. While other large U.S. retailers like Target and Costco are prospering, Wal-Mart is floundering (Wal-Mart Watch Report, 2007).
Wal-Mart has been met with some challenges of being setback, its sales are down, the stock is flatten, its growth has leveled off and it is constantly plagued by self-inflicted public relations problems.
Wal-Mart's reputation felt tremendously in recent years by 27%. Wal-Mart had to take a turn back from expanding its plan, failing to enter means markets such as New York City and facing numerous lawsuits, including gender discrimination with class-action lawsuit. Also because Wal-Mart pharmacy had been making many mistakes filling customer's prescriptions this cause them to have many problems as well. Problems that would cost them to have many lawsuits filed against them. One customer complained that he had left his diabetic prescription at Wal-Mart Pharmacy to be filled and sent his daughter to pick up the prescription when they had contacted him that his prescription was ready. On the return home and after checking the medicine or prescription the man saw on the label that it was not prescribed as he had been taking it and nor had his doctor changed his prescription. The man took the medicine back and put up a big ruckus with the pharmacist. This not only happen once or twice with the same Wal-Mart Pharmacy but it had happen to four other people.
As a result of confidential concern in increasing very large stores culturally into global markets, Wal-Mart faces management problems as well as external problems, which causes severe problems to Wal-Mart in the global Market.
Action Program
Wal-Mart mail circulars, which are the central supporting part of its advertising. The circular are printed on recycled paper with soy ink and include blurbs about charitable and environmental activities. Wal-Mart now exclusively uses its own associates and their families as models for its circulars, a practice it began two years ago. All this good will, however, has not been able to keep Wal-Mart from creating controversy (Discount News, 2007).
According to the Discount News (2007) recent actions suggest a policy change, if ever so slight. The Wal-Mart tag line: "Always the lowest price. Always" is being changed to "Always low prices. Always," this is a little more ambiguous. Some negative publicity is inevitable at a company the size of Wal-Mart. As it continues to grow and expand it is realizing it has to take a more proactive approach to its advertising and marketing plans. The strategy for Wal-Mart was to build many large discount stores small rural areas. However, they had competitors such as Kmart focusing on larger areas that had populations greater than 50,000. With the marketing strategy Wal-Mart had was to guarantee "everyday low prices" as a way to pull in customers.
Definitely from the point of view of the consumer, cheaper pharmaceuticals can only be something to cheer. And Wal-Mart accepts that consumer savings on top-selling prescription in the agenda will be important, figures charging $4 for a 30-day supply of medicine will save customers money. The 291 generic drugs in the program include the most commonly prescribed drugs for some of the most common illnesses facing Americans today - such as cardiac disease, asthma, diabetes and glaucoma - Wal-Mart is persuaded that it has delivered the sort of shockwave to which observers of the company have become familiarized with (Davey, n.d).
Here is a list of Wal-Mart Programs:
Prescription costing $4 will be presented to all pharmacy clientele having a prescription from a doctor that can be package with a covered generic medicine.
The uninsured will also be eligible.
Insurance will be acknowledged and accepted.
The program presently covers 291 generic medications from many of the most common therapeutic category.
The medicines represents are used to treat and manage conditions including allergies, cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes. Some antibiotics, antidepressants, antipsychotics and prescription vitamins are also included.
