CORPORACIÓN UNIVERSITARIA MINUTO DE DIOS

ENGLISH 2- MAJORING IN READING - (BUSINESS) Second Strike

Pre-Reading (15 points, 5 each)

1. Wal-Mart is…

a. A bank b. A university c. A retail store

Wal- Mart is…

a. A European Company b. An American company c. A Chinese company

2. When did Wal-Mart open in Colombia?

a. 2 years ago b. 4 years ago c. It doesn´t sell in Colombia.

Wal-Mart Gives Its Store Brand a Makeover

Wal-Mart is changing the formula for many of its Great Value products, adding
new items and rolling out updated packaging

By Matthew Boyle

Wal-Mart Store has completely overhauled its oldest and biggest store brand, a move
likely to send shock waves through the ranks of branded grocery manufacturers around
the globe.

Wal-Mart has worked with suppliers and consumers to test the quality of more than
5,250 of its Great Value private-label products against leading national brands. With
thousands of products spanning 100 categories.

The company has changed the formulas for 750 everyday items, mostly foods. Vice-
President Andrea Thomas, an innovation specialist who worked on new product
This article was adapted for educational purposes from Business Week (16/03/20) by Bibiana Martínez and the
Curricular Group. © UNIMINUTO 2012. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the
contents in any form is prohibited.
development at Frito-Lay and Hershey before joining Wal-Mart in 2007, has also
launched more than 80 new products under the Great Value line, such as thin-crust
pizza and organic eggs.

Some of the new products were designed using consumer feedback, which Thomas
hopes will make them unique and perhaps even more attractive than national brands.
"Customers have compared products for us and have told us about what they were
looking for," she says.

The relaunch also includes new packaging design to provide a more consistent,
consumer-friendly image for Great Value, which was launched in 1993. Nutritional
information will be more prominent, and nearly all labels are now in English and
Spanish.

At the same time, skepticism toward store brand products has dissipated as more
shoppers discover that many match the quality of national brands, but at lower prices.
The rate of shoppers who buy a store brand rather than a national one has increased
to 59%, according to the Food Marketing Institute.

Private-label products generally cost anywhere between 5% to 20% less than name-
brand products. They also deliver higher profit margins for retailers. Those higher
margins certainly appeal to Wal-Mart, which is notorious for squeezing its suppliers to
deliver the lowest prices possible.

The big question now is whether consumers will keep buying store brands when
economic conditions improve, or return to national brands. By improving Great Value,
Wal-Mart hopes to make that decision more difficult.

Vocabulary

Unscramble the letters to form the correct word, then match to their meaning. (35 points, 5
each)

a. danrb (brand) (e) The debut of a product or brand into the market.
b. Reeamkov (removake) (c) Who provides resources needed by a company in order to
produce goods and services.
c. Plusipre (supplier) (f) the full extent, stretch, or reach of anything.
d. Fropit (profit) (g) Person who shops.
e. chluna (launch) (a) A design or name that distinguishes one line of goods.
f. Ingpasp (pasping) (b) Renovation, restoration.
g. Opshper (shopper) (d) Returns or revenue as from property or investments.

Reading Comprehension

This article was adapted for educational purposes from Business Week (16/03/20) by Bibiana Martínez and the
Curricular Group. © UNIMINUTO 2012. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the
contents in any form is prohibited.
 Answer the following questions according to the text. (25 points, 5 each)

1. Which store brand has Wal-Mart overhauled?

a. Frito Lay b. Hershey c. Great Value

2. Who has tested the quality of the Great Value products?

a. Managers b. producers c. suppliers and consumers

3. Which products changes have had more changes in their formulas?

a. Hershey products b. Frito Lay Products c. Foods

4. Which features besides the formulas have changed?

a. Packaging design b. labels language c. both a and b

5. Which rank do national brands price their products in comparison to private

brands?

a. Higher prices b. lower prices c. same prices

Choose the correct option according to the text. (25 points, 5 each)

1. Andrea Thomas, Wal-Mart’s Vice-President, has worked with the company

since 2009.

a. Right b. Wrong c. Doesn´t say.

2. None of the products were designed using shoppers’ feedback.

a. Right b. Wrong c. Doesn´t say.

3. Great Value products’ nutritional information will be labeled in three

languages.

a. Right b. Wrong c. Doesn´t say.

4. Private-label products cost anywhere between 5% to 20% more than name-

brand products.

a. Right b. Wrong c. Doesn´t say.

This article was adapted for educational purposes from Business Week (16/03/20) by Bibiana Martínez and the
Curricular Group. © UNIMINUTO 2012. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the
contents in any form is prohibited.
 5. Wal-Mart is well-known for making its suppliers to deliver the lowest prices.

a. Right b. Wrong c. Doesn´t say.

Writing

Write a letter to a pen friend telling her/him an experience you have had. Include the
changes that experience has caused on you. (150 words)

Dear johan:

On December 10th, it was a very pleasant experience because I was with my family in
chiapas (mexico), with a new culture, and meeting new members of the family.

Was a very beautiful experience since we met the virgin of guadalupe in the basilica of
guanacuato.y what I liked the most was that it was a family experience.

I love you very much and I hope to see you soon

ATT: Katherin Rodriguez

ID: 000539752

This article was adapted for educational purposes from Business Week (16/03/20) by Bibiana Martínez and the
Curricular Group. © UNIMINUTO 2012. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction of part or all of the
contents in any form is prohibited.