08/11/2005 11:48:00 PM 
The unit is designed to help Bentonville get hipper in both fashion and household goods. With US store openings slowing down, Wal-Mart is looking to carve out a greater share its customer's purse and knows it needs to be more contemporary to compete.
The article explores some of the challenges the unit faces.
But as Wal-Mart steps out of its comfort zone, it runs the risk of walking right past its conservative shoppers. A risque new line of T-shirts for the teen and tween set carries sexually suggestive messages such as "My boyfriend is out of town," "Meet me after school" and the brief but provocative self-description "Easy."
"Disgusting," was the verdict from an expectant mother who checked out the shirts at a store in Bentonville recently but who refused to divulge her name, worried it would leave her unpopular in what is, she noted, "a one-company town."
While customers fret over T-shirts, the New York staff is worried Wal-Mart will falter when it comes to displaying its trendy new merchandise, putting, say, a modern-looking horizontal striped plate next to one with a grandmotherly floral pattern.
Watts called Wal-Mart's uneven product presentation a "real issue." To fix the problem, the chain has quietly hired 350 "style police" -- the official title is fashion merchandiser -- who travel from store to store teaching employees how to display trendy new products.
It's debatable exactly how much influence this small unit can have in a culture that is conservative and anti-trend. The idea of making their private label brands more interesting, is a no-brainer. However, these are brands with little or zero equity and if Wal-Mart is really serious it is going to require an advertising effort of Targetesque stature. This is something that we have yet to see from Wal-Mart.
It will also be interesting to see what they do with brands. Will Wal-Mart look for opportunities with designers? Can more upscale brands now find a home in Wal-Mart?
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