Research Topic

Fortune is out with its list of the “50 Most Admired Companies,” and Walmart landed at number 24, which is only a big deal if you buy into the notion espoused by those who compiled the list that it is the definitive report card on corporate reputations.

It is not, at least as far as retailers are concerned for the simple reason the methodology doesn’t take into account the views of shoppers whose perceptions of retail companies matter far more than the folks Fortune surveyed to arrive at their most admired ranking.

Walmart is guilty of greenwashing to enhance it corporate reputation, and it would take the company three centuries at the current pace to reach its goal of being supplied 100% by renewable energy, according to a group critical of Walmart sustainability efforts that others have lauded.

Walmart president and CEO Mike Duke frequently asserts no other global retailer is better positioned than Walmart, and it is easy to see why he holds that view especially when compared with the situation at the world’s second largest retailer.

SAN FRANCISCO — Williams-Sonoma ended fiscal 2011 with revenue and earnings growth in its fourth quarter. The company reported that net revenues for the fourth quarter of 2011 increased 6.1% to $1.3 billion versus $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2010. The company reported diluted earnings per share on a GAAP basis of $1.17 compared with $1.05 for the same period last year.

Target ranked 25th on Fortune’s listing of the 50 Most Admired Companies, which is the lowest level in the past six years. The decline could be viewed as troubling, but only if you buy into the notion that the list is the definitive report card on corporate reputations.

It is not, at least as far as retailers are concerned. In 2011 and 2010, Target was ranked 22nd, down from 2009 when it was ranked 19th and considerably below 2008 when it nearly broke into the top 10 with a ranking of 11th after a ranking of 13th in 2007.

Arlington, Va. — E-commerce sales continue to grow and have a major impact on multichannel retailers, according to new report from The Retail Industry Leaders Association. RILA, in partnership with Auburn University and with sponsorship from Accenture, on Wednesday released the third annual State of The Retail Supply Chain report.

Target has some ambitious growth plans for the next five years, and to help suppliers participate in that growth Retailing Today has partnered with the consulting firm Sales Is Not Simple to host a unique event on April 26 in downtown Minneapolis.

YONKERS, N.Y. — After three consecutive months of improvement, the Consumer Reports Index for March slipped to 46.1, from 49.6 last month.

March's Consumer Reports Index measures overall consumer financial health and showed that the confidence of the American consumer is waning.

Further challenging consumer confidence, The Trouble Tracker Index increased slightly this month to 52.2 from 49.1 in February, and is now at its highest level since August 2011.