Dell's Dealings: Enter Wal-Mart

While packing for my upcoming New York trip and half-heartedly watching an episode of Law & Order SVU, I saw a commercial that halted my packing, mid-fold. A friendly looking Wal-Mart sales associate started the narration, which I wasn't paying much attention to, until I heard the words "Dell Dimension" in tandem with the Wal-Mart logo flashing on to the corner of the screen. My attention snapped towards the television, and I sat, mesmerized by the last 10 seconds of cheesy music and clips of the trademarked Wal-Mart smiley bouncing around the newest model of the first PC that I had ever owned. My thoughts were clouded with confusion, outrage, denial, but basically held to one overarching theme: Dells are now available at Wal-Mart? Wait.. what?!

A quick Google search confirmed it: Dell is now in partnership with Wal-Mart. On the Direct2Dell Blog, they answered the "why?" question with a long schpeal about "delivering [Dells] on a global level" and how this change "will only augment our core direct business model, not replace it." In simpler terms, their disclaimer seems to be: "Don't worry. Same product, different venue." Something I have a hard time believing.

Perhaps this example will shed some light on why I'm so concerned: Snapper, Inc., an outdoor power-equipment business known for high prices that match their high quality products, partnered with Wal-Mart for three years. And for three years, there was pressure on the higher ups at Snapper to "find a lower-cost contract manufacturer." Or, an even better alternative: the suggestion to produce "a separate, lesser-quality line with the Snapper nameplate just for Wal-Mart." Cheapen the bottom line. Double your sales. Wal-Mart pushed, but Snapper had enough sense to push back, and pulled their product from those smiling blue shelves. (The longer version of this story was recently published in Charles Fishman's book, The Wal-Mart Effect.)

But aside from the worry that Dell will suffer a Snapper-similar fate, there are the ethical questions that are now raised with even an utterance of the Walton family's prize business. It's no secret that Wal-Mart has been center stage as of late, the favorite topic of talk show hosts and political figures alike, a model for the effects of outsourcing and all the baggage that accompanies it. And now Dell, one of the biggest names in PCs, has a contractual affiliation with them.

I'll be sure to watch this one unfold.