Modest April sales growth at Wal-Mart
Same store US growth below 1 per cent
Wal-Mart has reported a small increase in US same-store sales growth for April, suggesting that US consumers are no more bullish about the economic outlook than their UK counterparts.
The world’s biggest retailer has been forecasting like-for-like growth of between zero and 2 per cent across the month. For the four weeks to April 29, it said its US comparative sales are estimated to be 0.9 per cent, around the mid-point of the forecast.
The figures cover the core Wal-Mart chain as well as the Sam’s Club warehouse operation. Across the past week, food sales growth was stronger than general merchandise, with increases driven by higher average spend rather than greater customer footfall.
As Wal-Mart drives to restore the strong sales growth it has enjoyed in the US over recent years, the company has announced the promotion of John Fleming to chief marketing officer for the company.
[img r]walmartjohnfleming.jpg[/img]Fleming ([i]pictured[/i]) is currently CEO of Walmart.com. He will retain overall control of the online business as well as taking responsibility for all marketing and consumer communications programs, including advertising, consumer research, visual merchandising, signage, point-of-sale and all in-store promotional materials.
He succeeds Bob Connolly, who is to retire at the end of the year. Michael Duke, CEO of the Wal-Mart Stores Division, said: “The depth of Wal-Mart’s management team allows us to tap into tremendous internal talent like John to ensure continuity.
“Throughout his Wal-Mart career, Bob has made many significant contributions to merchandising and marketing. Given John’s talent and enthusiasm, we’ll look for him to do the same. We also look forward to what his unique style and creative spirit will bring to our marketing efforts.
“Additionally, John’s background in both traditional and online retail ensures we will continue to strengthen the ways we market and merchandise to customers. Walmart.com has proven to be a tremendously important complement to our stores business.”
