Sam S Club

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it would close all six of its Sam's Club membership warehouse locations in Canada by the end of March. The Bentonville, Ark.-based discounter is shifting its focus in Canada to supercenters, which sell groceries and general merchandise, after the warehouse clubs failed to meet sales expectations, a spokesman said.

Parking-lot wind farms: In Wednesday's Section A article about Palmdale's decision to let shopping centers and business centers install small wind turbines, a Sam's Club plan was projected to generate "76,000 kilowatts of energy." It should have said annual kilowatt-hours (the unit of measurement for wind energy).

The global run on food that has led to shortages and riots in Egypt, Haiti and other nations has made its way to U.S. shores. Concerned about rising prices and limited supplies of staples such as rice and flour, customers across the country have been cleaning out the shelves at big-box retailers, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Sam's Club and Costco Wholesale Corp. stores.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it would cut 1,200 salaried jobs at its U.S. Sam's Club stores by using fewer managers with more responsibilities. About 3,000 jobs will be condensed into 1,800 positions with higher pay, a spokeswoman said. The change will improve customer service by making operations more efficient, she said.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. considered spinning off its Sam's Club warehouse-club unit last year before deciding against it. "After looking at it for a while, we decided that the best place for Sam's Club is to be part of Wal-Mart," Sam's Club Chief Executive Douglas McMillon said. Wal-Mart didn't discuss the prospect of a spinoff with shareholders, he said.

Sam's Club, the warehouse division of Wal-Mart Stores Inc., said that its membership income growth was not meeting its expectations and that it might change its membership structure to attract more customers. "Our income is continuing to grow -- our membership income -- but it's behind plan," said Doug McMillon, Sam's Club president and chief executive. He spoke at the company's analyst meeting.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Monday that Sam's Club, its warehouse members-only division, would offer members discounts on healthcare coverage. Members can save as much as 50% on services not normally covered by medical insurance, such as laser eye surgery and dental care, Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart said. Sam's Club will offer the program in partnership with Glendale-based HealthAllies, a division of UnitedHealth Group Inc., the second-biggest U.S. health insurer.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s Sam's Club is offering Internet services including website development to small businesses as it competes with Costco Wholesale Corp. for customers. The website program's prices start at $5 a month, Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart said. The service will let users offer e-mail and online sales, the company said. Shares of Wal-Mart rose 91 cents to $56.35 on the NYSE. Costco, the largest U.S.

The Arkansas Supreme Court overturned a trespassing decision that barred a labor union from soliciting for members at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores nationwide. The court ruled that the world's largest retailer failed to show irreparable harm from solicitations by members of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it was still examining the order.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, named a new chief of its Sam's Club unit, which is struggling in the face of tough competition from Costco Wholesale Corp. and BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. Wal-Mart promoted its chief information officer, Kevin Turner, 37, to replace Tom Grimm, who is retiring. Growth at Sam's Club has lagged behind Wal-Mart's other units. Earlier this month, the warehouse segment posted operating profit growth of just 3% for the second quarter.