Product Description

Charles Fishman takes us into the heart of the biggest company on earth, ever, to show how the ‘Wal-Mart effect’ shapes lives everywhere, whether for cleaners in America, bicycle-makers in China or salmon farmers in Chile. Now Wal-Mart’s influence is so great it can determine everything from working practices to market forces themselves, Fishman asks: how did a shop manage to do all this? And what will the ultimate cost of low prices be?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #172390 in Books
• Published on: 2007-02-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

Management Today
Fishman has great new material and presents it brilliantly.

New Statesman
Fishman is clearly troubled by Wal-Mart, but he exercises an open mind.

Literary Review
Balanced, intelligent and commendable ... a very good book.

Customer Reviews

Thought provoking and an interesting read
I generally don't read business books but I was glad I picked this one up. A surprisingly good read with plenty of interesting and insightful information about the Wal-Mart empire. Fishman gives a generally balanced view in spite of the closed nature and lack of transparency of the Wal-Mart corporation.

Fishman often uses anecdotes and metaphorical examples to illustrate his points and one that stuck out to me by the end of the book was his comparison of Wal-Mart to the automobile. We love our cars and the convenience and freedom they give us but we know that we must change our use of the car to reduce our carbon emissions - likewise Wal-Mart is popular even with customers that don't like it because the prices are good. However, we see that we must change our shopping habits as reducing prices have the knock-on effects of shifting manufacturing to China etc.

Just as we ask ourselves questions of the environmental impact of our use of the car we should ask ourselves of the impact of the superstore (and not just Wal-Mart) on our immediate environment and culture. As Fishman says "Do we value cheap merchandise more than good factory jobs?", "Do we value convenience... more than charming main streets with local shopkeepers" and most importantly, "Do we want a single company to have the reach and power that Wal-Mart has - a power that right now is accountable to no one?".

Thought provoking stuff and a good read too. Recommended.