Walmart would love to be in Europe.
Walmart Deuteschland was a thing
The problem is low cost shopping market in Europe was already saturated by domestic brands, particularily Aldi and Lidl. Both offered superior quality to Walmart at competitive and sometimes lower prices. Moreover, there was a problem with labor laws.
The only way Walmart could turn a profit in Europe was by flouting said labor laws, which proved to be a tad unpopular with the court system. Since their European competitors could turn a profit, but Walmart couldn’t, it left the European physical market in 2006 and only offers online shopping in Europe.
A better question might by why couldn’t a clearly superior American store chain make a profit in Europe while following the rules, when the inferior European chains can. There is a lession in the tale, but you won’t learn it from Wall street. To uncover a great mystery like the economy, one must study all its secrets. Not just the narrow minded view of the oligarchy.
No one claims that Europe is a developed country. That’s because its a funking continent, fugwit.
Walmart have ventures into Europe in the past. They bought the highly successful Supermarket chains of Asda and Netto. They tried to change them by ‘piling.high selling cheap’ before discovering that.both chains already.did this, very successfully.
After about 20 years, Walmart realised that they weren’t able to increase profitability in already.highly profitable businesses and, during a downturn in the US economy, decided to consolidate their US based business by selling their European assets to the Issa Brothers, two British businessmen who literally started their.business washing cars on filling station forecourts and.have subsequently.built a.business Empire of gas stations, motorway service stations supermarkets, food distribution network and fast food joints.
Asda seems to be.doing just fine under the Issas.
Walmart preferred to use the asset capital to buy the Denver Broncos.
Basically, Walmart did want to be in Europe, went there, spent 20 years trying to find ways of making money and realised that the local supermarkets could do it better than them, so they got out.
On the chance that this isn’t a troll post:
Interesting that you mention Walmart. That fine company managed to find its place in economy text books as an example how not to colonize, ‘xcuse me, branch out into other countries.
I mean, western Europe is culturally close enough to the US – hey, most of your ruling class is descended from Europeans after all, and your current tyrant (for one day!) is the grandchild of a German immigrant.
And still, Walmart managed to tank big time in Germany, mostly by assuming that of course the back-water Europeans would be thrilled to bits and pieces to get predatory pricing (illegal in Germany) and glorious lovely American working conditions, like chanting on how awesome their company is and spying on your co-workers (has gone out of fashion in Germany some time in the 40ies).
So yes, if your definition of ‘developed country’ is to take any amount of BS from our employer under the guise of “but we are all a family here! … until I fire you, then it’s business” ?
Yup, we are not that sort of developed county, and I hope we’ll never be.
… by the way, I hear our primitive Aldi (with primitive chairs at the primitive check-outs for employees to primitively sit on) is doing okay in the US.
