Wal-Mart solidifies India plans with Bharti for 2008

Although Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) and Indian retail powerhouse Bharti hooked up in a 2007 partnership t being Wal-Mart's presence into India, concrete plans were not set in stone. That is, until now. The world's largest retailer has taken a measured approach into entering the Indian market without upsetting the traditional "mom-n-pop" retailers that form the retail backbone of Indian consumer spending.

But, Wal-Mart has now laid out plans to open 10 to 15 large retail stores [subscription required]within the next seven years in a disciplined and orderly way. These locations will employ an estimated 5,000 Indian citizens and will be 50,000 to 100,000 square feet in size. The first is expected to open and be ready for the public by the end of this year.

With an Indian retail market valued at $300 billion -- but being fed by small, family-run operations -- Wal-Mart of course wants its share of that pie. In addition to going after Indian's huge retail marker with global retail competitors, Wal-Mart also wants to modernize India's retail industry and supply chains at the same time. That would give it a large competitive advantage over the established retail industry, even though nobody is talking about that. It's modus operandi for Wal-Mart, though. Over time, it beats the competition down -- and it's why it has become the world's largest retailer in the first place.