According to Fu Mengxi, vice president for Wal-Mart (China) Investment Co., Ltd., the company will open a new Sam's Club in Pudong, Shanghai in 2009.
The new store is Wal-Mart's first Sam's Club in Shanghai and its fourth on the Chinese mainland.
Having entered the Chinese mainland market in 1996 with its first store opened in Shenzhen, Wal-Mart's Sam's Club only opened three stores in the market over the past 12 years and it has not opened any store in Shanghai. However, the situation may end in the next one or two years.
Fu said in a meeting with the divisional officer of Shanghai's Pudong New Area Li Yi that Wal-Mart planned to open its fourth Chinese mainland Sam's Club in Pudong, providing wholesale services to small business operators. At the same time, Li said that Pudong could provide advantageous conditions to the development of other business models and it would support Wal-Mart's development in Pudong.
Sam's Club defines itself as a purchasing agent for members and it provides products at discounted prices to its corporate and individual members. The store sells more than 3,500 kinds of products, including fresh goods, dry goods, frozen food, beverage, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, daily supplies, office supplies, and home appliances. These products feature large packages or combined packages as well as low prices.
Sam's Club is a warehouse shopping club named after the founder of Wal-Mart, Sam Walton, and it currently has more than 500 chain stores around the world.