Readers of this blog know I think WalMart (see chart here) is horribly Locked-in and thus well into the Swamp. As the chart shows, this has left them with maudlin performance (at best.) I recently posted on their fiasco firing the ad agency as part of firing their own advertising director in an effort to preserve that Lock-in and outdated Success Formula.
Today we learn (see article here) that WalMart’s fired agency, DraftFCB, is going to get the KMart account. This is a sharp move for Kmart. After WalMart and DraftFCB spend millions to study the discount retail marketplace, WalMart walks away from that research in order to preserve its own beliefs. So, KMart now gets all that research for free. And it is a very smart competitive move. KMart is using WalMart’s Lock-in to their advantage. And any time you do that, you improve your odds of succeeding.
Of course KMart is part of Sears Holdings (see chart here), and I’ve blogged often at how Locked-in Sears is. So I’m really not that optimistic for KMart. I think Eddie Lambert, Chairman at Sears Holdings probably took this move because he thinks he can save a few bucks. And, DraftFCB is famous in its industry for having some of the best cost justification work there is, which appeals to Mr. Lambert’s cost reduction Lock-ins. Nonetheless, it is a clever move that takes advantage of a competitor’s Lock-in, and any business that wants to succeed should look for such opportunities.