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Key insights and practical lessons from the world’s largest retailer, promises the cover of Natalie Berg and Bryan Roberts’ new book, simply called Walmart. Selling at £29.99 (or £22.99 on Amazon ), this book will represent fantastic value for local retailers who want to understand how their industry works. The first Walmart was opened in rural America in 1952 by Sam Walton and its success was driven by his obsessions. Other books may tell the story with greater panache but Berg and Roberts capture the key moments with studied neutrality. They are both retail analysts. The audience that the authors have in mind are the major global suppliers who want to be listed by Walmart. For them this is a handbook that explains how to work with Walmart and provides hints at what to expect. “There is a difference between being tough and being obnoxious,” Claude Harris, Walmart’s first-ever buyer, says. “Every buyer has to be tough. That’s the job. You’re not negotiating for Walmart, you’re ne...

Analysis of the UK's £32 billion and fast growing convenience market by Ed Garner of KantarWorldpanel shows that fresh and chilled is where Tesco Express is putting its emphasis. Speaking just after him at Sweet Charity's Independent Retailer Conference, Chris Etherington, chief executive of wholesaler Palmer and Harvey, said that fresh was nowhere near as high as it should be on the agenda of the independent trade. A reason for this is that the wholesale industry is not as good at delivering this as it should be. The major multiples are very good at it. We need to get better, Mr Etherington said. In a speech that was otherwise optimistic about the growth prospects for local shops, this was an important caveat. Mr Etherington, who heads the UK's largest wholesaler by sales, says that the market will grow. "It is a great, great opportunity and it's the shoppers that are doing it," he said. But how soon can the wholesalers get it right? This week's n...