Adapt or fall. The prevalence of Super Selectos against the multinational Walmart. An analysis of the supermarket industry in El Salvador

Abstract

This research investigation explains the factors by which the Salvadorean supermarket chain Super Selectos has survived the arrival of a multinational like Walmart. A comparative analysis between different indicators is developed with the purpose of identifying the strategy used by Super Selectos in order to retain its position in the local market. This document covers three areas of study: location, prices and consumer preferences. A map showing the amount of branches each supermarket has in the country was used in order to apply the Herfindalh-Hischman Index and find out how the industry is concentrated. Then, the prices of three supermarket chains were compared.Finally, a survey was prepared and conducted in order to find out which super market chain is preferred by Salvadoreans, and the reasons behind it. It was concluded that Super Selectos has a competitive advantage in relation to the other chains because of the amount of branches nationwide, its competitive prices and its wide variety of products.