Story Archive

Right Hand, Meet the Left Hand

When online retailer Amazon celebrated its 20th anniversary by holding a big one-day sale — but only for its “Prime” members, who pay an annual fee for extra services — other retailers got grumpy. Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, was one of them. It tried to steal some of Amazon’s thunder by holding its own big online sale on the same day. “Some retailers are charging $100 to get access to a sale,” snipped Fernando Madeira, president of Walmart’s online division, in a slam on Amazon’s membership fees. “But the idea of asking customers to pay extra in order to save money just doesn’t add up for us.” That might make his boss unhappy: Walmart operates Sam’s Club, a discount chain that charges an annual membership for the privilege of shopping there. Not to mention Walmart’s online division, which is launching its own paid membership program for extra services, trying to copy Amazon. News of that service leaked two months ago, but Walmart hasn’t been able to get it going yet. (RC/USA Today) ...Walmart doesn’t seem to understand the number-one reason people shop at Amazon: “Because it’s not Walmart.”