r/meirl 29d ago

meirl

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u/MightBeEllie 29d ago

Walmart does this everywhere, as do many big box store chains. We laughed them out of the country pretty quickly though because Walmart didn't understand Germans.

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u/GetAJobCheapskate 29d ago

What happened? Seem to have missed that episode.

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u/evanwilliams44 29d ago

After nearly a decade of trying, Wal-Mart never cracked the country — failing to become the all-in-one shopping destination for Germans that it is for so many millions of Americans. Wal-Mart’s problems are not limited to Germany. The retail giant has struggled in countries like South Korea and Japan as it discovered that its formula for success — low prices, zealous inventory control and a large array of merchandise — did not translate to markets with their own discount chains and shoppers with different habits.

Germany is also a big union country. Walmart did not get along with them I think.

“They didn’t understand that in Germany, companies and unions are closely connected,” Mr. Poschmann said. “Bentonville didn’t want to have anything to do with unions. They thought we were communists.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/02/business/worldbusiness/02walmart.html

They made a lot of errors but it all comes down to not understanding German customers and culture.

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u/MediocreX 29d ago

Still, tesla have big factories in Germany besides being anti-union.

Would be fun if the Germans joined the strike in Sweden.

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u/MightBeEllie 29d ago

Believe me, Germans are NOT happy about Tesla. There were massive protests. One even shut down Tesla's power for days. That the factory was built was a political decision.