I’ll be the first to stand up and admit that I’m not a huge fan of Wal-Mart. We’ve seen and heard about their labor practices. The Wal-Mart stores I checked out in the San Francisco Bay Area were crowded, messy, and even a bit dirty. The saying that “Wal-Mart has everything” is both good and bad. I went to Wal-Mart for the first time in about 5 years to do some research. I found misplaced product everywhere, opened packages, disorganized shelves, and aggravating parking situations. Even worse, I couldn’t find an associate on the sales floor to help me.
When it comes to Wal-Mart bashing, it’s pretty easy to jump on the bandwagon. We’ve heard all the rumors and reports about how Wal-Mart has poor overseas labor practices, underpays their workers, skimps on insurance coverage, doesn’t pay for overtime, squeezes suppliers, etc. When it comes to Wal-Mart, we’ve pretty much heard everything negative there is to say.
Over the next few articles in this series, I’m going to write about all the things Wal-Mart is doing to go green and help the environment. From the store level to their suppliers, Wal-Mart is changing the entire supply chain. Wal-Mart gets a lot of criticism, but this is one area I think Wal-Mart should be applauded for. Does going green help their bottom line? Probably. Does going green help their image? You bet it does. Can Wal-Mart do even more? Yes, we all can do more. But if Wal-Mart is taking actives steps to help the environment and they benefit from doing so, I believe Wal-Mart should still be applauded for its efforts.
When we talk about large scale effects on the environment, Wal-Mart is one of the first places we should think of. As the world’s largest retailer, their scale is simply put, massive. Any changes to go green will have huge, positive impacts. In the next article, we’ll quantify Wal-Mart’s massive scale and what they are doing at their stores to reduce Wal-Mart’s environmental footprint.
I also definitely am not a Wal-Mart fan- I don’t agree with their employee labor practices, their bans on unionization, and basically everything else involving Wal-Mart’s interaction with their employees or suppliers. However, the major strength of the company seems to be saving the money that they have witheld from their employees. They are doing some good with this money by trying to go green. I would say that this effort is “greenwashing” but, since its Wal-Mart, it has a huge impact on many suppliers. Regardless of whether or not Wal-Mart is just going green to regain popularity or get business from those who disagree with their employee practices, they are making a splash. I think that it’s great that they have identified ways that they can lessen their environmental impact, but the truth still remains for me that they have the money to make such big changes because they have stiffed so many employees and suppliers over a long time.
Thanks for this thought-provoking series; I will read it with interest. I completely agree with you about the negative assessment of Wal*Mart’s track record as an employer and wholesale buyer, but if they are making even a small effort to go green, it certainly should be applauded. Lots and lots of Americans live in an area where avoiding Wal*Mart is simply not an option. In my very small hometown, we don’t have a Trader Joe’s or a Whole Foods. We have an excellent but tiny locally owned health-food store, pharmacy, and hardware, and then 10 miles’ drive away there is Wal*Mart and Wegmans. You just can’t get everything at the good local stores, so, Wal*Mart it is. Since we have to buy our trash bags there, if they can offer Bio-Bags, then great!