Cross-cultural corporate fails

[@zafranorbian757]

Being forced to chant the companys name every day sounds genuently creepy, as does a store were everyone around you has a fake smile.

[@pega17pl]

One reason why Walmart failed at Germany.

[@sparksbet]

To be fair, Americans smile at each other more than Germans do as a matter of course, without being forced to by their employer. Not smiling as a service worker would be seen as pretty rude in the US. ...the chanting thing is still creepy tho.

[@simonkraemer3725]

Well, the first one is creepy but having smiling employers instead of grunty ones is soo nice. I like American positivity although it might look fake. They just want you to feel happy too.

[@zafranorbian757]

@@simonkraemer3725 I do not feel happy if I got the feeling that everyone around me is dishonest. Infact it is quite uncompftable. As an example I felt compftable with a salesperson after he started on a 5 minute rant on how the new computer software he was forced to use made made things much more complicated then it needs to be but was nessesary to follow new laws for dada security. This rant both showed that he has competence on his field as well as humanizing him more than just smileing ever could.

[@felixw19]

@@simonkraemer3725 not having to put on fake smile does not equal grumpy! It just means that they are doing their jobs with some kind of seriousness.

[@rzeka]

I'm not sure American walmart employees see the chant as a bonding exercise, I think they mostly just tolerate it because they need to keep a job.

[@rzeka]

Khaffit I don't know anyone whose ever worked at a walmart but if you type "walmart chant" into youtube you can see it being done. I have no idea how common it is tho. They're pretty cringey videos, and one is even just called "creepy walmart chant", so it's definitely not just Germans who are freaked out by this.

[@billyd10]

@@rzeka It is creepy even for the US. It is not just this practice that is creepy though. I am an American and I would have be very desperate to work for a company that would make me do that. And to be honest with you I really find many of Walmart business practices questionable at best and I will never shop there.

[@DeltaCortis]

Considering in many US states you can be fired by your employer for absolutely no reason wanting to "keep their job" is probably the right answer.

[@bastik.3011]

@@DeltaCortis thats wzhat i love about working in Germany, the employer cant just fire me without giving me a legaly valid reason and even if, being Fired on the spot is impoosible unless you stole, chatted aboput company secrets or similar things. the employer is legaly bound to give you a notice like a mont or two so you have time to look for a new one

[@turbowolf302]

As a former Wal-Mart employee, yes. You tolerated it as a paycheck, and nothing more.

[@horaspeher3368]

If I remember correctly, the boss of Walmart in Germany couldn't even speak the language and when asked about it (and research into German culture), he declared that that wasn't necessary, since Walmart was a huge success in the US after all, so their recipe would work anywhere. Such hubris...

[@anna-flora999]

He's American (probably), what can you expect?

[@horaspeher3368]

@@anna-flora999 Americans don't have the monopoly on looking down on others, Europeans are pretty good at it as well. But yeah, he did seem to be on a mission to confirm every stereotype about Americans.

[@anna-flora999]

@@horaspeher3368 i rather expect bad and then be pleasantly surprised if proven wrong than the other way around, i know not all Americans are like him

[@wothin]

@@horaspeher3368 agree, but the difference is that Americans are less aware of their hubris as they kind of see themselves as the center of the world. While Europeans aren't that dissimilar in that regard, they don't see themselves as the status quo of the world

[@Elite7555]

@@anna-flora999 At least that is the picture they paint.

[@petrameyer1121]

You missed one major reason for the WALMART failure Rew! In the US WALMART uses a tactic of undercutting prices to drive local businesses away until they are able to dictate prices. This is done by selling products below the purchase price. This is a calculated loss deemed acceptable to gain control in the area. In Germany, this is prohibited by law. You can not sell items below the "Einkaufspreis". This prevented WALMART to gain control of an area, as they had done countless times in the US.

[@Bishop0178]

exactly

[@theposhdinosaur7276]

I would ask how the fuck the USA doesn't already have those same common sense regulations, but then I remembered the terrible lobby system preventing any kind of reform...

[@hendrikdependrik1891]

@@theposhdinosaur7276 Don't you have anti-dumping laws over there?

[@theposhdinosaur7276]

@@hendrikdependrik1891 "there" being where?

[@somecrazdude2412]

Yep. They just did it in my city, and I'm considering running for council to prevent shit like this in the future. A few businesses died shortly after it came here, and it's only getting worse.

[@haydent4461]

TBH as an American I find the complaints about Walmart (smiling, automatically offering help, etc.) are perfectly reasonable. I just want to get my shopping done, thanks. Also, I find the chants extremely strange. There's no need to do that, really.

[@fgregerfeaxcwfeffece]

According to the comment section: It is seen as a (creepy) power play that is tolerated by the desperate.

[@0xCAFEF00D]

I think he overstated he issue with offering help, I get how it would get annoying since you rarely need help in a supermarket. Here in Sweden that's common behavior in clothing stores. Of course they don't seem to have some rule that turn employees into mines but they frequently ask if you need help. In most retail it's on you to ask for help. All of this might just be different between Sweden and Germany as well. A comprehensive comparison on things like this would be very interesting.

[@overboost7667]

@@0xCAFEF00D Been to Sweden for holidays from Germany twice now and the shopping experience is more or less the same. In Supermarkets or small markets there is not much personal contact on the shopping area, most employees are busy refilling or at the check-out. In clothing retail, you will be greeted and the offer to be there if you want to ask something or looking for something special, but they leave you alone when you signal so. My experience in Sweden was, that people don't start a longer chat with a stranger, they are quite reserved - combined with a big view on self-service. (disclaimer: both holidays in the Jönköpings län area, which may represent a more local experience (like I found it to be reasonable cheap to shop compared the wildly hyped stories about Sweden in general))

[@LucRio448]

Usually in stores in germany employees would offer you help - but not on sight and rather if you seem to be looking for something in clothing stores for example. In a grocery store, most people just tend to know what they are lookign for and where to get it, so if you find yourself in the rare case that you can't find what you are looking for, you simply ask someone and employees will of course try and help you out. They are jsut not running around asking everyone if they need help because that is super annoying if you are buying stuff for a week which may take some time and you are asked if you need help like 7 times. Plus, staff in grocery stores most of the time is busy restocking shelfs, so they do not have to randomly roam through the store because they got nothing useful to do.

[@unconventionalideas5683]

@@fgregerfeaxcwfeffece It is really unusual. In America they don't do this.

[@blahfasel2000]

You left out one of the most amusing cultural misunderstandings in the whole debacle. Initially, they had american style greeters at their store entrances, however this led to german customers regularly complaining about being harassed by strangers in the parking lot. However, although cultural differences might have played some role (the bad press they got for that certainly didn't help), AFAIK some key misunderstandings about the german retail market were the main cause for their demise. Germany already had one of the most competitive retail markets, with some of the lowest profit margins in the whole developed world, especially in the food segment. Hard discounters like Aldi are the only ones that can make significant profits (around 4%, which is still not much compared with other countries), while the average profit is just around 0.5% or so. This works because the vast majority of german retailers are private companies (even though the owning families might be some of the richest families in the world, they are still family-owned businesses) or cooperatives, and thus they are not as driven by shareholder value as the public companies that dominate other retail markets. Although Walmart started their german endeauvour by acquiring around 100 existing stores (from Wertkauf and Spar), compared with other german retailers they were a small fish, and thus they had next to no bargaining power with local suppliers (they tried and failed miserably to impose their own rules on suppliers, who mostly only said thanks, but no thanks). Combined with german (or more generally continental european) laws that make consistently selling below cost illegal (with very few exceptions), this meant that their usual strategy of driving the local competition out of the market by undercutting their prices simply wasn't possible. They were barely able to stay about even with the higher priced german chains like REWE. Since many german customers are very price sensitive and not very brand-loyal (except for cars maybe ;-), I think this is what spelled Walmarts doom at the end. BTW, even though generally US companies might be more adept at expanding internationally, in retail its actually with a few exceptions mostly european companies that are successful on the international stage (for example Aldi, Metro, H&M, Ikea, Carrefour, to name just a few).

[@NicolaW72]

@blahfasel2000 Thank you very much for this explanation!

[@maxd2215]

@Conchita Mendez agreed. Sadly the main 4 retail companies in Germany have somehow managed to devide the market share amongst them leaving little space for international players who would put them more under pressure and increase competition. Walmart had the chance to win with better customers service and a different brand agenda but failed to recognize the cultural differences. It's a role model of how to do ignore market research and customer habits upfront. Let's hope future business competitors will learn from it, do their homework and put the retailers under much harder and fact checked pressure.

[@swanpride]

There was also the thing with the pillowcases...Walmart offered decently priced pillowcases which were like lead in the shelves (and the few which were sold were brought back immediately), because they were seized for American pillows, not German ones.

[@Llortnerof]

​@@maxd2215 Those 4 companies divided the market by making it one of the most competitive in the world. International players couldn't put them under any more pressure than they already are if they wanted to, mostly because they'd bankrupt themselves trying to.

[@adrianseanheidmann4559]

@@maxd2215 more competition that there already is in the discount market?! Are you mad?! Most prices, for milk e.g., are already alarmingly law and actually hurt the German food industry.

[@Dragonflyte1]

I work for Wal-Mart in America and I must say the chant in the morning does ABSOLUTELY nothing to encourage us or our failty to the company. In fact most of us avoid it whenever possible. The 10 foot rule is encouraged and so is smiling but not often adhered to. As for the company not allowing relationships among associates, I have no idea where that came from. They have no such rules in our stores In fact they often hire married couples. The only rule they have is if one of the couple is in a management position, they can't work in the same department. Germany isn't missing a thing by losing Wal-Mart!

[@PeterJavi]

He isn't entirely right in saying an employer can't decide what you do in your own time. People in high enough positions will have their decisions questioned if they work in the same department as their close relatives. That's pretty much global legislation.

[@23GreyFox]

No just Germany, i believe they lost in S-Korea too.

[@pouncepounce7417]

Walmart works not in germany because they have to follow laws there.

[@NiekNooijens]

@@23GreyFox in Japan they had a supermarket chain as well and Walmart had to sell it because it wasn't profitable the way they ran it.

[@liz-ard12]

@@NiekNooijens Walmart also sold 80 percent of its stake in Brazi... soo losing there, too

[@sergeantpanther678]

Spying on employees GDR style? I guess that’s why they call it WALLMART

[@wasserruebenvergilbungsvirus]

lmao

[@AVKnecht]

Niemand hat die Absicht eine Mauer zu errichten!

[@RoyalKnightVIII]

No More like the Nazi filled west Germany. Funny how people don't seem to remember that the west had its own secret police; that was full of old Nazis

[@Tommy-5684]

@@RoyalKnightVIII historically the STASI where known spying on its citizenry by 1989 the STASI had between 500,000 and 2,000,000 collaborators and was infamous have having recorded more film of its citizens then any other country at the time

[@RoyalKnightVIII]

@@Tommy-5684 *cough FBI cough CIA cough* we have our very own secret police in the US. Every country has to have secret police. The West Germany government had secret police as well except they had literal fucking Nazis running it. www.dw.com/en/stasi-files-shed-light-on-west-german-spy-agencys-nazi-past/a-5787380

[@Eiranion]

Interestingly, Aldi is doing extremely well in the US, to my great delight as an German expat living over there. They are very good at selling their typically German features, like needing coins to unchain a shopping cart, as a neat trick to reduce the need for manpower and allowing for lower prices.

[@Snufkin224]

Are you saying that there's a person hired to hand you a shopping cart?

[@Supern00bmaster]

In my experience, there's usually a few unchained shopping carts and the rest aren't that much in use.

[@gustavmeyrink_2.0]

Aldi is doing very well in the UK too. They've been voted best supermarket for a number of years in a row with the highest rate of customer satisfaction, they pay their employees more than the others and pay their suppliers more despite being substantially cheaper. I suspect they can do that because Aldi doesn't have to keep shareholders happy by maximising profits and paying out dividends.

[@SilverXeno]

It was so nice to find an Aldi in the US! I was really thrilled. People in my area don't seem to have a problem with the coin+cart thing...but I do notice A LOT more "swapping" in the parking lot...whenever I'm walking towards the building with my coin in hand - someone who doesn't want to walk all the way back to the return area will give me a nod and offer their cart - and I just give them my coin. (Though sometimes I can't b/c I'm using my novelty coin that used to clip to my keychain.) The only difference I noticed in the store is that there is a long counter where you can go to bag your groceries. Oh...And that people don't automatically put down a plastic divider when they load their groceries on, they expect you to do that part yourself. I still do it out of habit.

[@Eiranion]

@@Snufkin224 Kind of the opposite. While in most American supermarkets you can leave your cart wherever and they have to hire people to collect them and take them bag to the store entrance, at Aldi's they are chained to together and you have to insert a quarter to get one, and you only get the quarter back if you return the cart to the proper location and re-chain it.

[@Sgtpeterenis]

It's just incomprehensible to me that a company the size of Wal Mart would not make sure that their contracts hold up to the law of wherever they are. Why would they not have a German legal team? Or even just industry veterans who would have told them that what they're doing is just so weird and/or will definitely land them in court?

[@Mysterios1989]

Well - sometimes it is bland arrogance, they are successfull with that in the US, so it has to work everywhere else. My mom worked in the 80's and 90's in East-West cooperation and among other things, also participated in an international cooperation to build up a broadcasting-system in some eastern european nations. One thing she was really annoyed by were american college graduate that came in with their US check-lists, expecting that the Eastern European nation would work exactly like they learned how an american broadcaster should work. They basically repreated the lists of what to do they got in college and fell terribly flat, because they couldn't take into account the cultural differences.

[@lionmori]

Well, the same with Amazon.

[@zippoblackburn3106]

The head of Walmart Germany seemed to be abit arrogant. Supposedly he ignored advise by his aides (the former CEO's of the german companies Walmart had acquired), stating something along the lines of "We are Walmart we know how everything is handled best!" It would not surprise me if this attitude lent a helping hand in many of the fails.

[@swanpride]

Because they are Americans. They are not used to the notion of cultural differences having such a big impact, because it is outside of their experiences. Europeans tend to be more aware because they interact more with different cultures.

[@StefanReich]

Most of today's laws are wrong

[@Sam-es2gf]

These cultural differences just reaffirm my belief that the UK is far more European than American in culture. Anyone smiling without a good reason here is assumed to be unwell.

[@flybeep1661]

Too bad the UK rather wants to become an American lapdog instead of a leading EU nation.

[@TheSpacecraftX]

@@flybeep1661 old people and useful idiots anyway.

[@denizalgazi]

"FFS, close your mouth! You look like you're missing a chromosome!" LOL

[@DrWatson610]

Well, the UK is one of the only European countries where Walmart successfully operates.

[@Sam-es2gf]

@@DrWatson610 Not any more. Walmart sold Asda in February this year after steadily losing market share for years (primarily to Aldi and Lidl - both German).

[@derekeodice811]

I'm an American and even I find the smile somewhat fake. Many consider it common courtesy, especially where I live (Atlanta). The problem lies with the US's idiosyncrasies. Rewboss nailed it with his closing line - understand the local culture or fail. There are numerous business cases that discuss in great detail the importance of understanding the local culture (unions, ideologies, etc). Great video!

[@kandkmotorsports]

I am an American and I would NOT chant the companies name, let alone grin at everyone like some idiot! It seems creepy because it is!

[@vertexrikers]

Hey cool, thanks for that - I was looking through the comments for some statement about it. But many of these stories exist on abroad/foreign topic channels - maybe with the US it's especially difficult to generalize, because it's such a huge country with so many, very different states with different customs? It's like someone says that in Europe everyone drinks only tea and vodka, chews on sauerkraut, carries a baguette instead of deodorant in the one armpit and an umbrella in the other, because it's raining all the time.

[@kandkmotorsports]

@@vertexrikers In my area New York State we dont like being bothered while we shop, if I need help I will track someone down. We shop at walmart occasionally but do not really like it. They do not treat their employees very well and are ruthless business competitors. Possibly next year my family will visit Germany. It seems the older I get the more I think people are generally more similar than different the world over.

[@technologywontsaveus]

You remember when you posted a video about having difficulties finding good topics? This was a very interesting video about a pretty normal topic that is very relatable to most people. It's interesting how cultures differ. I work in a supermarket and when I would think about chanting in a group and so forth, not only myself, but all of my co-workers would roll their eyes and think of a cult. Honestly, I can't imagine employees moving in sync and chanting the company's name and really enjoying it. The sounds not only cultish, but is a form of brainwashing. If done in a normal manner, like if the entire staff of a department gathers together in the morning to wish each other well, good luck, to give their best, that'd be fine for me. Also while you say in America the staff normally helps their customers, here in Germany it's rather the other way round: If you need help, you often have to find a suitable person who has knowledge about the products you are searching or can answer certain questions.

[@uncinarynin]

Don't Japanese companies use such methods to make their employees identify themselves more with the company?

[@Zentauri77]

And they had those guys who'd put your groceries into bags. Germans don't like this. We put our groceries into our bags on our own, thank you! :)

[@uncinarynin]

@@Zentauri77 right. Putting the beer bottles on top of the strawberries is never a good idea. Also I have a system of directly separating "things that must be cooled/frozen" from the rest when packing at the cash register so I can sort it into my fridge more easily.

[@mausklick1635]

The reality of wage slavery at Walmart always freaks me out. I'm glad these evil creeps failed here in Germany.

[@unconventionalideas5683]

Walmart's wages in the US are better than those of Aldi, surprisingly. The smiling rule is less common. The relationship thing is standard in the US. They don't want what happened with Peng Shuai or with Harvey Weinstein to happen in their workplace so they ban the whole practice.

[@AmstradExin]

@@unconventionalideas5683 About half of all relationships start at the workplace here. So that would be outrageous.

[@SamAronow]

@@AmstradExin Most companies allow workplace relationships as long as the two employees aren't in the same department or one isn't subordinate to another. You just have to fill out a legal waiver with HR.

[@luke_cohen1]

Wage Slavery is usually unintentional from all sides of the equation. Corporate debt levels have simply been at an all time high recently which is what the next recession will focus on (2008 was about consumer/household debt btw). This has resulted in incredibly tight labor budgets and an increasing focus on stock market performance by the multinationals since profit margins are incredibly thin at the moment due to local tax burdens and overhead costs along with a decade of low monetary on the consumer end. The result is an economic clusterfuck of epic proportions.

[@MLennholm]

Another thing American companies have a habit of doing is to instruct their employees to frequently say the customer's first name while speaking to them in order to appear more casual and friendly. Thing is, in many European cultures when you do this it comes off as condescending, like you're speaking to a child.

[@faithlesshound5621]

Some British companies are doing this too. I don't particularly like it. I thought at first it might be a generation thing - when I was at school boys addressed each other by surname, but that seem to have faded out - but some businesses such as Starbucks insist on using first names, so it must be a matter of policy.

[@PGraveDigger1]

How would employees even know the first names of their customers?

[@MLennholm]

PGraveDigger1 Virtually all businesses these days have the policy of collecting the customer’s data one way or another before they do any business with said customer

[@PGraveDigger1]

@@MLennholm Not in Europe they don't. The vast majority of businesses over here don't ask for personal information and probably wouldn't get it if they asked. It's only really the big multinational corporations that ask for personal info. And even with those companies the personal info isn't something that employees that interact with the customers know.

[@BladeXFiresword]

@@PGraveDigger1 As someone stuck in fastfood and having to call out people's names, we just ask for a name. As long as they don't give us something obviously offensive like penis we generally don't care.

[@Dave_Sisson]

Aldi (Sud) arrived in Australia about 15 years ago and quickly grew into the 3rd largest supermarket chain. While they're certainly different to other shops, no one thinks they feel foreign as they made an effort to 'go native' and adopt the local culture. About the only strange thing they do is have a surcharge to pay by credit card in a country where no one pays cash for anything.

[@sualtam9509]

I guess every shop is charging you for that, they are just more subtle about it by hiding it in the price. But it's a good thing for poor people, get some cash and pay less.

[@HungrigerHugo89]

We don't have that in Germany, but people that pay with their bank card (It's not a credit card but similar). We're also still veeeery keen on paying cash for a lot of goods ... I think its got a little bit to do with less trust in banks and not wanting governmental oversight.

[@Dave_Sisson]

In Australia almost everyone pays with a card and it is unusual to find a person who wants to pay cash, they could be a criminal or at least a tradesman who is avoiding paying tax. Thus many Australians look carefully at people who pay cash for things. So it is very strange to have a chain of shops that wants customers to pay with cash when it is more bother for everyone. This is the one area where Aldi Sud stuck with German culture rather than "going native" in a different country.

[@HungrigerHugo89]

@@Dave_Sisson Also in coffee shops for a coffee or for a newspaper or an ice popsicle?

[@Dave_Sisson]

Hugo, at least in Melbourne, many people do pay cash for things under A$10 (about 7 Euros) at some old fashioned shops. But more places are encouraging payment by card for even the smallest purchases. That way they don't have cash to count and keep secure. When I was in central Europe, I was surprised that a lot of people used cash, although most shops I visited also accepted cards.

[@Alfadrottning86]

Another example of failed US globalism ... McDonalds failed here in Iceland. They did not take into account that processed fast food would not be attractive here. So, i think we have no American fast food chain here.

[@newu3563]

You lucky people.

[@mionami9973]

I don't know much about Iceland, why isn't it attractive there?

[@shniken]

And Starbucks in Australia

[@Alfadrottning86]

@@mionami9973 I would love to say that it was because we are all so much into healthy food! .. But the truth is likely much more boring. None of McDonalds supply is produced here .. so its all imported. Importing to Iceland with a fairly small population and also being an island is expensive. So you end up with your typical burger of even worse quality, because it was shipped here for much longer than in the US ... but you pay 4 times as much. Imagine a McDonalds burger (normal burger) costing around 6-8€. Also, the only place that might remotely make sense to have a fast food restaurant is Reykjavík .. so that is one single city in the entire country... where a lot of people are actually into foodie stuff and rather go for quality over quantity. So the main customers might be tourists.

[@Me1le]

There are some KFC & Taco Bell restaurants in Iceland tough. I guess they have their logistics better figured out than McDonalds had.

[@hanswurst-re7df]

Walmart just running head first into germanys 2nd most powerfull union was certainly very funny

[@nigelmchugh5541]

Starting the day with organised chanting is well drilled into Americian citizens. After all, they do it every morning for a decade while at school.

[@GFSLombardo]

AMERICAN CHILDREN "chant: (i.e.sing) the National Anthem "The Star Spangled Banner" every morning in Primary school. After that its only "sung" at sporting events-and only the first stanza. Its not sinister "brainwashing indoctrination"-That comes later watching AMERICAN TV.(lol)

[@bluerisk]

@@GFSLombardo I never ever sung the national anthem at school, and actually one time in the military. Ok several times, if you count in the times when the officers trained (I guess one can't say rehearse) with us because no one knew the text etc. pp. - it became a bit of a disaster nonetheless.

[@asshole9191]

@@bluerisk yeah, i sang the anthem like a few times when we learned it in primary School (German here). We had to learn it by heart but it's not long, so no big deal.

[@whattheflyingfuck...]

each morning pledging allegiance to the flag creeped me out entirely being a german in the US as an exchange student ... so Hitler-Jugend-ish **shudder**

[@KitsuneHB]

Here in Germany we learned our national anthem in the 7th grade and also learned about the historical context and why parts of the anthem are forbidden.

[@doco4242]

It's also worth noting that Wal-Mart Germany didn't have local management well until two or three years into their mess, which contributed a great part to their initial failure.

[@ennykraft]

I recently got told by a German friend about the troubles they have with their US headquarters. One prime example: Their head of sales Europe actually thought Norway was part of Germany. After that, nobody took her serious anymore.

[@michischweiz]

I used to work in Staffing for a big American public company in Germany. When the crisis hit in 2008 they asked me to adopt some methods to avoid using recruitment agencies. I tried to explain several times, that I can not use these methods because in Germany there are strict labour laws and what they wanted me to do was actually illegal. They neither believed me nor did they care. I eventually left the company because I got sick of fighting a completely useless battle.

[@bluerisk]

@@michischweiz Hä?

[@TremereTT]

@@bluerisk I guess Michael Feudtner talks about "Unlauterer Wettbewerb". As a company in Germany you aren't allowed to ask employees of other companies to work in your busineness. Instead you have to use a Headhunter or and Agency that will be looking for employee in your competitors businesses. So you can't look wich companies HR made good decicions and hire these companies employees.

[@mazombieme4045]

I mean it was part of Germany during WW2

[@robinviden9148]

@@mazombieme4045 Norway? No, Norway wasn’t a part of Germany during WW2. Norway was occupied, but never annexed.

[@Grant5620]

Many Americans also find being asked for help very annoying (including this American)

[@olivierdk2]

especially those who worked in retail and have to face "karens" and "kevins" on everyday basis.

[@wallykaspars9700]

Walmart's policies for employees are too bizarre.

[@Packless1]

...North-Korea...?

[@needmorebrain]

At first, I thought: Oh nice, another Brit trying to tell me how I as a German feel. But after seeing your video I have to admit: You were very spot on ;) Nice video!

[@beageler]

He's been living in Germany for years. When he speaks German it's still kinda accented, but only slightly and not easily identifiable. I think he is almost assimilated :-)

[@mrnicomedes]

As a born and bred US citizen, I think I'm more comfortable with the German way of things. I think a lot of us here would agree. However, best get to chanting if you want health care, and don't forget to smile!

[@operatorchakkoty4257]

Come over. We have common sense. Want some? :)

[@randomjasmicisrandom]

There was a Walmart in Celle when I lived there during the time you said they were in Germany. I heard some of the reasons you gave as being why they left, but I also heard they were trying to push back against the German Sunday trading laws and force a change so they could open all week. They obviously (and thankfully) got nowhere with that aim.

[@thegelik4967]

I would like to shop at sundays

[@absikle6901]

@@thegelik4967 It's a rest day, everyone should get a break.

[@juttalio1664]

@@thegelik4967 But you can. Go to a gasstation. It will cost you more mobey, but leave me alone for making it a rule. Nobody can be that stupid to not plan 2 days ahead.

[@sethanix3969]

@@absikle6901 And you think, people who work on Sunday don't get other days off? I like Sundays, because I get paid a lot more on those days while generaly work is a lot less stressful at the same time. Furthermore I can do my leisure activities, like visiting amusement parks, on weekdays, which is even better. I don't even want to have only weekends off, when every other idiot in the country swarms to the same places I like to visit in the quiet of the week... The only problem is to coordinate your free days with the people you want to do the things with, but that's mainly a logistics thing. ;)

[@absikle6901]

@@sethanix3969 No I don't. I just said it's a rest day.

[@sparksbet]

I'm disappointed you didn't give any examples of the sorts of places Lidl put shops in the US that put off Americans... I've had a bit of culture shock at how discount supermarkets organize their aisles upon moving to Germany, but I'm not sure how strange of places they could've been putting their stores over there.

[@anna-flora999]

@Khaffit let's go on it from the other way, where are such stores normally placed in the states?

[@keidun]

The closest one to me is sort of hidden from view on a main road, in an area that is not really suitable for a grocery store...some warehouses in the area...most American groceries are visible and in shopping centers with other types of stores...AlDi did build most of their stores as a stand alone, but they are a destination store, easily accessible and visible.

[@swedneck]

​@@keidun I would presume that discount stores are in non-optimal locations as that probably saves massive amounts of money.

[@txvoltaire]

I personally wouldn't be freaked out if I saw shoes next to chocolates!

[@beageler]

@@keidun In Germany they are stand alone, in residential areas (sometimes, that's more a thing for other chains, though) or in commercial areas, sometimes even in industrial areas (in smaller towns, where industrial and commercial areas are the same except for downtown). I think discounter are very seldomly in a mall or shopping center here in Germany (one would usually find higher class stores there and/or specialised ones like butchers or bakeries). What you decribe seems like the normal place to find an Aldi, except that there would be quite a bit of signage if the store isn't visible from the road.

[@rustknuckleirongut8107]

I remember Lidl trying to get into the very lucrative Norwegian grocery market. It failed horribly when Lidl failed to realize that Norwegians are very brand loyal, but towards products rather than stores. They stocked their stores with 85% German/EU products that Norwegians found to be partly inferior and mostly weird. The customers would rather pay 35-50% more for the Norwegian produced equivalent if there was one, but Lidl refused to budge and bring in the staple products that everyone wanted. They also did the weird placement of the stores where people would have to drive a long way to a Lidl while there was nothing in the store worth driving there for. When moving into a new market I would have thought it mandatory to study the market you are entering, but no. Lidl paid a steep price for going in blind and dumb in Norway. You cant come into a market and lower the quality of the food by 40%, only lower the prices by 25% and all your stores are far away from densest population areas. Where I live in a "city" of about 30k people they idiotically put their store in the next rural town over that only had 5k people in it spread out over an area about the size of greater Berlin forcing the 30k people to drive 12 km or more to even try Lidl.

[@daffyduk77]

Norwegians are so cash-loaded (oil ! Only envious) that price is probably not a consideration for most of them.

[@bandecho_de]

The funniest thing that happened to me while shopping Walmart in Germany was when i bought a DVD of the Movie "Austin Powers - Goldmember" (in german "Goldständer"). The cashier looked a the cover and said "I didn't know we sell this kind of movie here". What a strange remark, i thought. Only in the parking lot it occured to me, she thought it was porn :-)

[@vertexrikers]

I've not been there often, but as I remember it there always was a creepy guy at the entrance of Walmart - doing nothing but scaring the hell out of customers coming in. Going in there with a friend, deep in conversation, minding your own business and all of a sudden you're being jumped by some crazy as fuck happy guy greeting you. So weird. But the worst was feeling sorry for the guy - what a shitty job it must be standing at the door all day, greeting people who clearly don't wanna be approached? I doubt that guy even got a good salary from this bullshit job. Same as for the human road signs - how aweful is that? Murrica is a very creative country when it comes to batshit insane jobs... O_o

[@thomaswolf2896]

Lidl had some similar problems in the UK, e.g. selling sour cherries which caused massive complaints about selling spoilt goods. But today Lidl has a pretty good standing on the UK market.

[@hxxxkxxx1129]

Sauerkirschen, hahaha. A good couple of years ago there was a similar problem in Germany with plantains. In the beginning, some customers thought they were normal bananas. I repeatedly couldn't help noticing how customers loudly complained about it. "What's that for a muck, do you want to poison us?"

[@blackforest_fairy]

sour cherries are not spoilt... but possibly a tyical german thing

[@manub.3847]

Love relationships between employees are not forbidden in my company, but one of the participants is transferred to another branch or department as soon as the relationship becomes serious or known. Several years ago, there was a report about an American business owner who was in extreme trouble with German labor law. He even tried to dismiss works council members immediately. The man believed that as a business owner he is above German law and can do whatever he wants. (other examples: John Deer, Terex)

[@MultiArrie]

strange, John Deer has a factory in Germany for 40 50 years or so, since they bought Lanz.

[@bastik.3011]

The difrfrence also lies in the Economy: USA: Huge Coperate Owned Companys with share holds etc. Germany, 90% Small Family Buisnesses 10% huge companies Heck one of the most popular Supermarkets in Germany, Edeka, has a concept wer you as a private person can buy one and run it on your own terms (like selectin what goes into the stock etc.)

[@unconventionalideas5683]

Yes. In the US, most corporations do the exact same thing Edeka does. McDonald's outlets are not usually owned by the company, for example. Nor are Chick-Fil-A. The US has a lot of small businesses generally, but of course, you don't see them as much internationally because they are too small to be international companies.

[@bastik.3011]

@@unconventionalideas5683 yes Thats called franchise and not what i ment. I get your point but what i ment is that The German Economy has allot of small to big Businesses and few of those Mega Cooperations like Amazon or Walmart

[@theexchipmunk]

I was 11 when they pulled out. I still remember them as one of the creepiest stores I ever was to. That time my mother went there was the first and last time. The greeters at the entrance were also a really big problem. As a german I can tell you there are two kinds of shopping for us. The first is "window shopping". Its the kind where you go in the city with friends walk around visit a caffe and enjoy yourself. Thats mostly for being nice clothes, shoes and luxury artikles. The other is quick, efficient and utilitarian. Thats food, general use clothes (underwear and so on) utility items. We want to go in, get our stuff, pay, get out and be done with it. And Wallmart is one of these stores that mainly attracts utility shopping. And a Greeter is something we do not want there. It keeps us from being quicker, its to personal, and all in all an annoyance.

[@Elite7555]

3:26 Yes, it is annoying that some salesman creeps up to you from behind and asks with this weird smile: "May I help you? Oh, I see you are looking through our wines." - Please, shut up and let me look in peace. I don't even know if I want to buy something, but if I take up your time I feel pressured into buying something even if I don't want to. In the last two years or so I have experienced this more and more - especially in gastronomy. Every five minutes I have to explain that everything is alright with my food. Yes, really. No, I don't want something else, thank you. God, can't even enjoy a conversation. This unwanted and unasked for shift in service culture is one of the phenomena people people (with growing disdain) consider to be "Amerikanisierung" (americanisation). And surprisingly enough this is pushed by many german companies because they think it is cool and modern and young people like it (though they are not).

[@ottonormalverbraucher7835]

Elite7555 I agree with you its terrible. And its terrible that many German people can't find out and take the effort what young people in Germany really like and think, insted often America is copied and silly useless English words are thrown into German phrases, without any reason. The idiotic assumption of what is "cool and trendy" without researching and understanding the young first its typical

[@ottonormalverbraucher7835]

Elite7555 and the idiotic" americanisation without any sense, is so typical for many German buissnes people. They often falsely think everything from USA is superior and "coole" without reason

[@albussr1589]

"May I help you?" The Fuck I´m wearing Headphones for a Reason, get the Hell away from me!! The only Interaction I want is at the fucking Register!!!

[@bokaboi]

Great video! You’ve earned a subscriber. Starbucks failed here in Australia because they failed to recognise cultural differences.

[@crispy9175]

As an American I would be creeped out at having to do a Walmart chant everyday before work. This isn't a cultural thing, it's a corporate thing. And you should run from any company that does it. It's weird and creepy.

[@danieljohnson665]

Doing these chants sounds like hardcore North Korea to me. For that reason, I would not even shop at Walmart in the US.

[@KokkiePiet]

I think it is much more interesting to see what aldi is doing right and Lidl doing wrong than what Walmart did wrong more than 20 years ago

[@G4KDXlive]

I would love to see Walmart move into France and try to ban staff from dating or flirting with each other. In France not flirting with colleagues I perceived as odd!

[@AmstradExin]

Same here in Germany

[@unfixablegop]

German customers are extremely price sensitive. This has lead to extremely thin margins in the retail business in Germany. And that's why mistakes quickly added up to huge losses for Walmart.

[@rmendell]

I've led product and project launch teams for a handful of global brands. The issues are often chocked up to "cultural differences" and the like, but the reality is usually not the differences themselves so much as that nobody sees there's a difference until it's too late. I found that most people are simply unaware that there's any other way to do things than the way they're used to. It's not even as sinister or ego driven as that sounds. It just that the idea a difference exists doesn't even occur to people. Success occurs when there's someone on the team that's got a worldview sufficiently broad to see where there might be differences. I worked on rolling out a menu program that included milk as a beverage option. This option made sense in the US and Canada because unflavored and unsweetened dairy milk is often consumed as a beverage by adults in those countries. The assumption within the organization was that the program would roll out in overseas markets (initially Australia, Germany, New Zealand, and the UK) exactly as it had in North America until I questioned it in a conversation with a colleague one day. It hadn't occurred to them that the program would change at all, except where regulations required changes. It hadn't occurred to me that anyone would have ever thought that offering unflavored dairy milk as a core beverage option for adults in these countries was a good idea. When I brooked the issue in a larger team meeting later that week, my contention that milk consumption patterns might differ in other countries was laughed at and derided with data that seemingly supported proceeding...that per capita fluid milk consumption in some of these countries was as high or higher than in the US. It was only in the next week, when the question was posed to our partners in these countries, that my colleagues discovered that their hot take was laughable and the idea abandoned. Months later, a handful of colleagues confided that I'd probably saved the company a lot of money and a lot of embarrassment by simply being aware that the US way wasn't the only way. TL;dr - Hire local people early and empower them to call BS.

[@RagingGoblin]

I'd agree with this, personally. People usually simply don't realise they're treading familiar paths until it's pointed out.

[@bl4ckscor3]

Today I learned why Walmart left Germany. I was 10 in 2006, and although my parents tried to explain it I never really grasped it or bothered to look it up, until now. Thanks for this very informative video :)

[@ottonormalverbraucher7835]

bl4ckscor3 I was a child too. But I am older then you 25 and I only was once in my live in walmarkt. My parents buying me a big fluffy white teddy bear. I have him today. But that is everything. Since then we don't where to walmarkt. We really seem not to care that mutch about that shop. But I like my teddy, he was important plushy in my childhood

[@doyleharken3477]

Soooooo... what you're saying is, in America it's legal for Walmart to dictate their employees' love life and order them to spy on each other?

[@KaiHenningsen]

I'd say what he's saying is that the US is very weak on empkloyee rights ... which fits with everything I know. (As an aside, the so-called "right to work" states have laws that say, essentially, that you can be fired on a whim. How's that for use of language?)

[@whattheflyingfuck...]

they call the absence of rules/laws: "the hire-and-fire-system" ... in the US having nothing is a system xD

[@olivierdk2]

"land of the free?...., whoever told you that is your ennemy".

[@lassehaggman]

Ultra capitalism sounds a lot like totalitarian communism.

[@sethanix3969]

@@lassehaggman No no no... You get it all wrong. It's only totalitarian if the government does it...

[@SWEmanque]

I hate shopping in American brand stores, the staff is so fake and keeps pestering you all the time. We don't want any fake smiles or have people pretend that they care about you in Sweden. It is very off-putting.

[@terineedler6219]

I must be german- I hate chanting and mandatory smiling because I think it's fake looking. I've always prided myself in being sincere or not at all. I'm overly direct if asked why I dislike something which is kind of satisfying when I see their face fall in disappointment because I didn't meet so ones phoney expectations.

[@aaron2709]

I'm American and did not know Walmart had their employees chant. I think this would strike most Americans as bizarre, as it does me. Seems like something from Japanese corporate culture.

[@Bishop0178]

or rather like the chinese

[@samuelmyllyaho6066]

I love your videos! Actually informative and responsible advertisements/sponsors. Usually its the videos that have the word 'you' in them that gain the most attention. even though they aren't really even factually right

[@JBiggsofWSNC]

I'm American and I love Lidl. I hope they succeed here.

[@Showsni]

I've heard that even schoolchildren in America have to do this creepy "pledge of allegiance" chant thing. Crazy!

[@agnieszkavanheirreweghe5837]

Seems like a cult to me 😆🙈

[@unconventionalideas5683]

Generally, that is no longer common practice, and even in schools where this is a thing, it is not compulsory to participate, as long as you stand respectfully. It used to be far more commonplace than it is now.

[@loucielaguerre8778]

@@unconventionalideas5683 my school still do that but they don't force me to do it

[@SamAronow]

It was originally intended as a way to acculturate immigrant children into American constitutional values, since said constitutional system is the basis for the country's entire existence rather than a shared history or language. Its creator was a socialist. But they were also afraid that too many Catholics were coming over and might turn the country into a Papal dictatorship.

[@vincentseebeck3373]

I just want to appreciate that you actually pronounced Third Reich correctly, I think that Ive never heard that before

[@garywheeler7039]

On the other hand, we in the US had a UK company build grocery stores, some kind of green, fresh vibe. The idea being people would buy prepackaged meal kits on their way home and cook them up for dinner. Americans did not know what to make of this as they often only do their grocery shopping once a week. They failed fairly quickly.

[@blackforest_fairy]

they would have been a huge succes in Germany since many germans like to buy fresh food on a daily base.

[@unconventionalideas5683]

It worked when Wegmans did that, though.

[@Vampirzaehnchen]

In Germany it looks like a sinister cult... true. xD

[@olivierdk2]

let's not forget about the employees having to spy on each others ( sounds either Communist or Nazi to me ).

[@maicod]

3:35 In The Netherlands in LIDL you don't even get to see an employee if you want to ask something :)

[@Moriarty1982]

Yes, good old german customer friendlyness. Anf we love it this way ;)

[@RoamingAdhocrat]

Shoes next to chocolates (or, chainsaws next to cat food) is what surprised and delighted us when Lidl entered the UK market back in the 90s

[@TomsDoItYourself]

I really liked this video, and I can appreciate the research that went into making it. We had a Walmart in Rosenheim in 2005, and I as an American sure was happy to have a little piece of home. Too bad that it got shut down, but of course it failed for all these reasons. Does anyone think Costco might have a chance in Germany? They did put one in Paris.

[@rban123]

Walmart’s policies are very abnormal even in the US. We have massive protests against Walmart here in the US for workers rights.

[@NorthSea_1981]

Please do yourselves (and the rest of the planet) a favor and bring that evil, greedy company down for good. WalMart needs to go into the trashcan of history.

[@HerbertLandei]

One cultural difference is that German customers care more than Americans when employees are mistreated, its a sure-fire way to discredit your company. So not only the greeters and the smiling creeped customers out, but also that a company forced their employees to do that BS, and people didn't feel comfortable shopping there because of that. There are other examples like Schlecker, where employees were mistreated, and the company went belly up. I still order from Amazon, but it makes me very uncomfortable to hear about the horrible working conditions, and I hope the company gets more legal push-back, and that the employees manage to unionize (even if it means I get my Vitamin D3 supplements two days later). If there were a convenient alternative, I would use it instead.

[@MATT-2033]

Germans care about the workers can't say the same where i live. Years back the federal finiance minister said in regards people should stop complaining and be greatful that they even have a job and even if that job doesn't help pay the bills then get a second job or shut up. He died a few years after that good riddance.

[@Julia-lk8jn]

Sorry, but there are other online shops. And unless you live somewhere out in a forest (unlikely in Germany, but I guess it's possible) Amazon can't be the only way you can get vitamins D3. I've seen amazon delivery in the city, they are horrible, constantly endangering cyclists by forcing them off the road. And I don't believe for a moment that they are sociopaths, but they are pressured to get the deliveries done. And that's going to keep happening as long as people use Amazon because "the alternatives aren't convenient". Amazon doesn't give a 💩about how uncomfortable you or anybody feel about the working conditions. As long as it works, those conditions stay, and as long as people shop there - uncomfortable or not - it works.

[@GameCyborgCh]

as a kid I was always so excited to go to Walmart. It was so huge and there were so many things to see there

[@sion8]

I've worked at Wal-mart before, but (2:39) a company chant I never did! Neither did I ever see it being done ever! It was in the New England region of the U.S. and was pretty old (in the established sense, not the decor), so maybe not being brand new may've been why the chant wasn't required, while in Germany it was new and bonding was seen as necessary by U.S. CEOs or something like that. By the doors where employees can come and go towards the storage area there are/were wide stickers with the so called "10-foot" rule that says "If you see a customer about 10 feet away smile and see if they need your help" or something like that, yeah in the U.S. employees are _required_ to aid anyone they see no matter what, a lot of us of course didn't unless asked by the customers, but management still wanted us to see if anyone needed help as we walked to and from our stations (cash registers, departments, etc.) it can get annoying for both employees and customers and I don't particularly like it either in any store. As for employee relationships, I'm not sure if that was in my contract but in the U.S. companies do have a lot of power over this kind of stuff. Management just doesn't want scenes of lovers that happen to work in the same place and so in some places they do have guidelines posted in the walls near HR and elsewhere, but I don't remember seeing that particular rule and I do remember seeing sweethearts and married couples as some of my coworkers.

[@hubi0079]

Thank you for this video rewboss. It is good to have a new awesome culture difference video of you again. Although the travel vids might be fun too, the culture vids are your strength, embrace them and make the most boring topic cool.

[@markusjuenemann]

This is how Screwfix failed in Germany. Working for them wasn't bad at all, but they simply didn't understand neither the german market nor the "typical" german customer. And they didn't listen to their german employees.

[@Lankpants]

One of the most interesting examples of a company completely failing to understand cultural differences was definitely Starbucks in Australia. They attempted to break into the national market with the exact same tactics and quality they used in the US, but evidently none of the execs had ever been to Australia because if they had they'd have known immediately why that wouldn't have been good enough. Australia has a strong coffee culture with immigrants of south European descent bringing over and spreading their culture across the major cities a long time ago. This lead to even low cost coffee across the nation being of very high quality and a cultural expectation of the same quality. This resulted in them being brutally crushed out of the Australian market with 80% of their stores closing and the remainder being sold into local ownership. Starbucks still doesn't do well here and they certainly never put a dent into Gloria Jean or Jamaica Blue. Contrarily Aldi saw a weakness in our market and came in with an understanding of how to exploit it and has been one of the biggest breakthroughs in Australia's recent history.

[@1234kalmar]

It's hilarious how americans need baby sitting even when shopping :D It's like a daycare

[@TheZeroAssassin]

Just stumbled across your channel, watched a couple videos, enjoying your content

[@todortodorov940]

When Aldi (Nord) came to Denmark in the late 80's early 90's they made a mistake and offered highly-pasteurized milk with a long shelf life. Even when Denmark and Germany are neighbors and culturally close, the Danes were used to fresh milk, stamped Aldi as low quality and boycotted it. This bad image still persist till certain extent. Lidl entered the Danish market some years later - they didn't do the same mistake.

[@shelster]

Awesome information here! Glad you tackled this topic and was able to give a glimpse of the bigger difference between the US and the Europeans. Although I do miss the friendliness and good customer service of the American salespeople, I now enjoy the privacy and freedom given by Salespeople in Germany.

[@k.chriscaldwell4141]

The ask customers if they need assistance thing is annoying to us Americans as well. If I need assistance, I will ask. A clerk's offer of assistance only interrupts one's thought process. It also puts one on the defensive to the inevitable sale push: _"We have an extended warranty for..."_ Get away from me!

[@anubis2814]

One of the first Lidl's opened up near me in Manssas VA last year, and while it wasn't bad, it still couldn't compete with Aldi on most things and Aldi had our loyalty. They had a few good things and were actually in walking distance otherwise other than for a few key things we'd never have gone. Their Cherries were amazing, their torts were great and I loved their bakery. Also wealthier people were more likely to shop there because when Aldi came to the US in the early 90's they were always dirty and kind of gross and in run down parts of town. Over time they have gotten really nice but the wealthy and many in the middle class still view them as a dirty place for poor people. Lidl had no such stigma, so for many middle class people it was kind of cool even though they could get everything there already at Aldi for the most part. Moved up to Philly and hope that Lidl gets up here again for a few items and their bakery and to see what kind of adjustments they made

[@Astrofrank]

For many years, Aldi hat a similar reputation in GB: according to it, there were two groups of customers - people from the underclass and Germans who want to buy their rollmops. When grocery prices in GB rose dramatically a few years ago, the reputation changed.

[@TheRedSphinx]

I'm Swedish, and I agree, Lidl has the best freshed baked bread of any supermarket chain.

[@bjoerkengard]

Would be great to see a video about Lidl's struggles in the US too

[@HansFranke]

It may be noteworthy that Aldi originaly started out in the US with an amost exact copy of their German stores at that time. The same two aisle basic structures, wares presented in boxes mostly standing on the floow, only a few shelves and no brand products. The only difference was the indroduction of a fridge section including humongous ice cream packs - at least in German terms - as well as package sizes in general. Their stores where extreme small for US standards and usually at somewhat off locations. All following the (back then) Aldi mantra of cuting cost down to the absolute minimum. So while this was an exact, almost unchanged copy of their German stores, it did work out quite well. They exactly hit the needs of extreme cost sensitive customers, who did enjoy the very basic setup. I guess the concept was so basic, that it transfered well into a different culture. In addition, Aldi always payed fair wages, related to performance - unusual in Germany (back then), btu eventually well received in the US. And isn't Costco about the same ide, just several times larger?

[@martin.brandt]

WalMart had recognized that profit margins in Germany were low and assumed competitors were just too stupid. In reality, competition was fierce, and German chains had learned to adapt. Also WalMart simply did not know that large stores outside cities need political permission in Germany, to protect vivid downtowns. This completely destroyed their expansion plans.

[@Julia-lk8jn]

I would think that the profit margins in Germany are low exactly _because_ of the constant Mexican Stand-off between Aldi, Lidl and Rewe. (And possibly Penny and Netto? Not sure about their market share.)

[@martin.brandt]

Very true. Plus, the Germans are extremely price conscious and will spend litres of gas hunting for discounts of some cents - as a collective behaviour this individual nonsense may even pay off in total. @@Julia-lk8jn

[@NicolaW72]

@rewboss Thank you very much for this very impressive example´s that a global economy has to recognize the regional culture to be succesful.

[@okaro6595]

Lidl has some issues in Finland also. The cashier lines did not have packing areas (which I get is typical in Germany), they did not have baskets so I could only buy as much as I could hold in my hands, they did not even accept credit cards. They adjusted to these.

[@LiftandCoa]

Im confused as we in germany always had baskets in supermarkets and im might go out on a limp here but im pretty sure that was the case with lidl too.

[@louiserocks1]

Not allowed to date other employees? That is the most insane thing I've ever heard

[@blackforest_fairy]

in Germany more then 60% of the people meet their Partner at work...

[@unconventionalideas5683]

It's done that way in many workplaces in the US because they don't want bosses coercing their subordinates into unwanted relationships. It seems a little paranoid to Europeans, but because of US workplace liability laws, if that happens in the US, the company is on the line for really expensive lawsuits, and they happen often enough that corporations want nothing to do with it.

[@OmikronPsy]

This is super exciting. Pls more of that!

[@idraote]

Or... you have to have a brand so immensely attractive that you can have customers adapt to your ways. A&F managed it for a time here in Italy, with people actually queueing to buy overpriced wares, but it only lasted the time A&F was fashionable.

[@stavas05]

3 years later and Aldi is on its way to become one of the 3 biggest grocery stores in the us

[@SorryBones]

I promise you, all Americans also think the Walmart chants are cultish and creepy. But if they want you to do it, you gotta do it - you don’t want to risk getting written up or lose your job. Door greeters are aight though. They double as a form of security, stopping some people to ask for their receipt.

[@todortodorov940]

Wallmart did not understand the German consumer. Germans have smaller cars and in larger cities we don't use the car when going shopping. We have smaller homes. This means that German consumers do not shop as big as the American consumers. Additionally, many locations are governed by local regulations on how large stores one is allowed to build - and they are much smaller than the US. This removed the advantage the Wallmart model had in the US, as German consumers were wondering what was the idea of slightly cheaper 2 liter ketchup bottle compared to the normal 300ml bottle other places. The "bulk" shopping made no sense, as the German consumer also wanted to buy fresh produce, which Wallmart did not offer (to start with). At the end, it wasn't worth the hustle going to Wallmart to save few euros, as one had to go to another supermarket anyway.

[@Arsenic71]

Walmart in Germany - good riddance. Though I have to admit, I really don't mind supermarket employees smiling or being friendly. I remember one time when I was living in the UK, I went to the local Sainsburys and the cashier smiled and whistled a nice tune. When I asked him, he said, what's the point of being bored, angry or bitter. At that moment I thought, wow, that is really true, I wish more people were like him. It really improved my day!

[@kendeas5079]

update. Lidl succeeded in my home town. we have two locations going strong down where I live in South Carolina

[@elton1981]

I’m in total agreement with the germans here. I think Hollister had a standard greeting which employees were required to say. “Hey wassup!” Going in to the store in the Liverpool it sounded utterly fake. I’m left thinking ‘why are you trying to sound like you’re from California, I can tell from your accent you’re from Aigburth.’ Surely a local greeting colloquial greeting would have been better. I wouldn’t have given ‘Y’alright mate’ a second thought.

[@SuperSiggiboy]

Lidl actually tried to establish itself in Norway in 2004, but it failed miserably and they gave up in 2008. At its peak they had about 50 stores. Some reasons for failure: 1. The market was saturated, which made it hard to win over customers. 2. Most stores were in awkward locations. People weren’t willing to drive the extra distance when they had a perfectly functioning supermarket (that they already knew the layout and offerings of) in a more convenient location. 3. They only carried Lidl-branded products, most (if not all) of which was produced outside Norway. We Norwegians pride ourselves in eating local food. And the Norwegian name brands have a strong market position here, not offering them made Lidl-stores a hard sell (if you had to visit another shop to get them anyways, why even bother going to Lidl?).

[@marooples]

I had worked at both a big, orange home improvement store and a red-and-khaki retail store in the US and can confirm that the team meeting thing and chanting the company name is SUPER cringe-y. I'm sure it's meant to keep employees loyal to the brand, but I do think it does the exact opposite for hourly employees. Wal-Mart wasn't as lucky in Germany as they are in the US in regards to contracts because I can bet that most Americans probably don't really read their employment contracts as thoroughly as Germans!

[@EdgyNumber1]

😂😂😂😂😂😂 That last Wal-Mart fail. The irony of employees spying on each other. Yup Wal-Mart deserved to fail.

[@olivierdk2]

Sound like a STASI policy, or....is it gestapo ?

[@EdgyNumber1]

@@olivierdk2 either or.

[@QALibrary]

The Australian DIY store Bunnings took over the UK DIY store Home Base in 2016... The first thing they did was sack all the board and people who knew about supply chains, stock control, warehousing and buying for the company... They then stocked and tried to run the company like an Australian DIY store... (The big issue was they forgot summer in Australia is winter in the UK) After a few years, they sold Home Base back to the board of people that they fired on the first day for £1/€1.50 This cost Bunnings £340 million to buy Home Base. Investment, money spent and losses on Home Base £1.0bn (they made zero profit). And when sold the company they had to top up the funds by the tune of £200 million So in total, they spent £1.5bn without ever making a profit

[@officialDragonMap]

If you think shoes next to chocolate is a typical German supermarket thing, we need to talk.

[@akrinornoname2769]

Yes, shoes obviously belong between biking gear and bananas.

[@officialDragonMap]

@@akrinornoname2769 Oh and if looked there if I would have wanted spirituous beverages.

[@CrystalblueMage]

The dating App "Smitten" launching in Denmark during a Pandemic (in Danish: Smitten = the Infection)

[@DavidFraser007]

Lidl and Kaufland are successful here in Czech Republic, probably because they have a real knowledge of what the local people want to buy. There's very little typical German produce.

[@blackforest_fairy]

another thing you forgot: wallmart put its stores near the highway. but Germans want their stores in the city since many germans like to buy fresh food everyday after work rather then shopping for 2 weeks at once. so they like to habe the stores somewhere between workplace and home. or just near their home so they can shop on foot or using a bicycle. a store were you have to use the highway to get there is not attractive to germans. yes germs do use the highway quite often, but not for shopping.

[@pickled51]

I remember reading that Walmart failed in Germany, in addition to the cultural differences, because they also attempted to negotiate lower pricing with their German suppliers. I believe this is also illegal in Germany. It became impossible for Walmart to offer lower pricing (which is their trademark in the US) because Walmart had to pay their German suppliers the same price as their competition. I never knew that Walmart employees had to do a chant before starting their day nor that employees could not date fellow employees. All I hear is that Walmart is not a great place to work. I love Aldi here in the US. Aldi recently remodeled most of their US stores and they are much nicer places at which to shop. We don't have any Lidl stores in my area, but I understand they are building stores in New Jersey where I used to live. Thanks for a great video.

[@AndreR241]

Why shouldn't that be legal?

[@mowana1232]

No, it's perfectly fine to negotiate prices with suppliersin Germany. In fact, that is one of the strategies of Aldi and Lidl. Because they are the biggest competitors in Germany and sell bigger amounts, they can negotiate very successfully with there suppliers for lower prices. What is however illegal - and Wallmart was fined for - is selling below cost. Meaning you cannot buy products from your supplier for $1 a piece and then sell it for 50 cents.

[@metalpit1000]

no, this isn't illegal, ALDI/LIDL/METRO practices this policy throughout every item in the shopping cart.There's only the problem of matching the producer price of the item. The three enterprises managed to pay 13 Cent per litre of dairy milk whilst the pp was 19 Cen t...

[@rbhyuaccentgirl3879]

0:25 Carnival: Sunday, 27 November 2022 America: Meghan Trainor's Good To Be Alive Canada _ Latin America: Ashleigh Ball's Gold In You UK, Europe, the Middle East _ Africa, Asia-Pacific: Peter Gabriel's Down to Earth

[@AventuroPlays]

This was a really interesting video about two things I didn't know were ever a thing! I mean, it makes sense that I never heard about Walmart in Germany growing up, but Lidl in the US seems like something I should have heard of in some form.

[@Canleaf08]

It is strange, not to see Lidl or Aldi in Canada. The local chains like IGA, Metro, Provigo / Real Canadian Super Stores and SuperC dictate the prices.

[@presbyterosBassI]

Lidl screwed up their entry into the US so badly, that they slammed on the brakes, took a long hard look, and proceeded with extra caution.

[@johola]

Walmart in germany was like idscenecys "welcome to costco i love you" scene. Just weird.

[@beageler]

Idiocracy?

[@johola]

@@beageler oh yeah WTF is idsceneecys😅. Idiocracy

[@filthyyoko1497]

Lidl tried and failed in Norway. First stores opened in 04, but it was all over in 08 as they only gained a 1-2% market share. I remember lidl stores as ugly with low quality products, and the checkout counters were just weird. They didn't even try to adapt to local culture it seemed.

[@meddlleu207]

Fake smiles are offensive.

[@kyle857]

People who have been asked for help are less likely to shoplift. That is the reason it is done.

[@xaverlustig3581]

Lidl seems to be doing fine in the UK though, aren't they? They are on every street corner and appear to be quite popular.

[@britshell]

3:50 That is not a problem for US Walmarts. You can be 3 inches from them, and they will act like you are not there.