In Walmart International news: Target plans to open 124 stores in Canada this year, bringing new competition for Walmart, which has 379 stores in the country.
A new survey conducted by Field Agent and reported in the Spring 2013 issue of Walmart Supplier News suggests that Target’s impending expansion into Canada could spell bad news for Walmart. Among the striking results:
- 60 percent of respondents said they would shop less at Walmart after Target opens. Walmart performed worse than all other retailers on this question.
- 88 percent of respondents (the highest response rate) said Walmart was one of the three retailers that would be most affected by Target’s opening in Canada.
These responses were apparently based on shoppers’ concrete experience – more than 70 percent of respondents said they had already shopped at Target in the United States.