Walmart announced today that they are one of nine corporations
joining in a collaborative effort to track and report sourcing from
self-identified and certified women-owned businesses (WOBs) over
the next five years. This marks the first time the Women’s Business
Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the largest third-party
certifier of businesses owned, controlled and operated by women in
the U.S., will launch a formal initiative to publicly report
aggregated spending on WOBs. Walmart helped form this unified front
of major corporations, including Campbell Soup Company, The
Coca-Cola Company, ExxonMobil, General Mills, Johnson &
Johnson, Mondelēz International, PepsiCo and Procter & Gamble,
in order to create a more visible movement and raise awareness for
the importance of sourcing from women-owned businesses.
Walmart made the announcement on behalf of the other companies
involved and WBENC at Walmart’s Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE)
Summit in Washington, D.C., a convening of leaders from business,
government, NGOs and academia to discuss and celebrate the
achievements of women’s empowerment.
“Creating economic opportunity and growth is central to who we
are as a company,” said Doug McMillon, president and CEO of
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. “We are proud to be part of this important
initiative, and together we can make an even bigger impact in
elevating these successful women-owned businesses. Our
customers care where products are sourced, and we believe
supporting women-owned businesses helps us put innovative products
on our shelves while helping these businesses thrive and grow.”
“Campbell is proud to join this collaborative effort in order to
raise awareness and foster more opportunities for female business
owners,” said Denise Morrison, president and CEO, Campbell Soup
Company. “One of the core values of our company is to ‘seek the
power of different’ and we are committed to assemble a supplier
base that reflects the diversity of the consumers and communities
we serve.”
“Empowering women entrepreneurs and women-owned firms is smart
business and smart economics,” said Muhtar Kent, chairman and CEO
of The Coca-Cola Company. “Whenever you do the right thing and give
businesswomen a real opportunity to compete, this creates a
positive ripple effect that allows her to strengthen her company,
her family and her community. And stronger families and communities
help fuel more growth and opportunity.”
“Women and minority-owned businesses are critical to both their
communities and our company as they spur economic development and
drive growth,” said Irene Rosenfeld, Chairman and CEO of Mondelēz
International. “We are proud to support this important initiative,
as we continue to strive for inclusion and diversity in our company
and women’s empowerment around the world.”
"Supporting women-owned businesses and diversity across our
suppliers is central to who we are at PepsiCo,” said Indra K.
Nooyi, Chairman and CEO of PepsiCo. “Our commitment to
diversity is not only a source of pride, it is a source of
strength. And it’s part of our broader commitment to what we
call Performance with Purpose, our approach to building a
healthier, sustainable future for all our
stakeholders — from our suppliers to our shareholders to
our consumers, customers, employees, and the communities we
serve.”
"P&G is committed to Gender Equality,” said Carolyn
Tastad, group president of P&G's North America business.
"Supplier Diversity has been an important business strategy at
P&G in the United States for more than 40 years. We are proud
to join this initiative to empower women-owned businesses, as we
believe in the power of economic inclusion. When the ownership of
our supply base reflects the diversity of our employees, consumers,
and stakeholders, our business grows and our community
thrives."
“By participating in this initiative, these companies will help
fuel innovation and growth for women-owned businesses across the
U.S.,” said Pamela Prince-Eason, president and CEO of WBENC. “With
women-owned businesses currently supporting the creation or
maintenance of 23 million American jobs, investing in their growth
means investing in more opportunities for the workforce
overall.”
The initiative comes at a critical time when women entrepreneurs
across a range of countries report having smaller and less diverse
networks, leaving them at a disadvantage for growth, innovation and
ability to be relevant to a global market (Global Entrepreneurship
Monitor). Walmart helped to recruit this initial group of
corporations to take part in this initiative and is encouraging
others to join as well.
This announcement comes on the heels of the culmination of
Walmart’s five-year Global WEE Initiative, which included a set of
goals to help empower women around the world through sourcing,
training and supporting diversity and inclusion. As part of the WEE
Initiative, Walmart sourced $20 billion from women-owned businesses
in the U.S. and increased sourcing from women-owned businesses
internationally. Additionally, in 2014, working with WBENC and
WEConnect International, a global network that connects women-owned
businesses to qualified buyers around the world, Walmart helped
fund the creation of the “Women-Owned” logo which can be used by
any woman-owned supplier certified by those organizations at any
retailer to highlight their products to consumers. Today, Walmart
has more than 1,500 suppliers who identify as women-owned
businesses, producing everything from apparel to produce.
In addition to participating in this collective initiative,
Walmart announced plans to launch a Knowledge Center that will
house the key tools, resources, learnings and achievements of the
WEE Initiative and help serve as a guide for any company or
institution in their work to empower women. For additional details
on Walmart’s Global WEE Initiative,
visit http://corporate.walmart.com/womensempowerment.
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world
save money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail
stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, over
260 million customers and members visit our 11,695 stores under 59
banners in 28 countries and e-commerce websites in 11 countries.
With fiscal year 2017 revenue of $485.9 billion, Walmart employs
approximately 2.3 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues
to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and
employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be
found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com on Facebook at
http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at
http://twitter.com/walmart.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170329005334/en/
Walmart Media RelationsTricia Moriarty,
1-800-331-0085news.walmart.com/reporter
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