There was speculation awhile ago that Bharti stores, Wal-Mart's partner in India, would drop the Wal-Mart name because of protests against the retail giant, and organized resistance to the international company. It seems the Indian people, much like folks in Japan (where Wal-Mart isn't doing well), feel it is important to shop locally. Today, several Bharti stores did open, and the Wal-Mart name was nowhere to be seen. We'll see how big of a role Wal-Mart will play in the future of Bharti, but right now, it looks like the people have them running a bit scared. Good for the Indian people!

Here's article from Daily News and Analysis:

No Wal-Mart seen in low-key Bharti launch

NEW DELHI: You may not get to shop at Wal-Mart, after all.
The Bharti Group made a rather low-key entry in the retail sector on Wednesday by opening three neighbourhood format stores in Ludhiana.

Spread over 2500-4000 square feet and stocked with most daily use items, they do not refer to ‘Wal-Mart’ anywhere. Instead, they are called ‘Easy Day’.

So for now, the partnership between Bharti and Wal-Mart appears to be restricted to wholesale cash & carry format, which means selling to other retailers and providing back end support to Bharti’s front-end stores.

Wal-Mart’s cash & carry stores are slated for launch only by the end of the year but the retailer has provided most of the retail expertise - such as information technology back-up, retail practices and training guidelines - for Easy Day stores. Then, Bharti’s low-key retail entry prompted some experts to ask whether this was a deliberate strategy to deflect any protests.

Many big corporate houses, Reliance Industries prominent among them, have faced the music after launching front end retail stores with much fanfare.

Perhaps taking a cue from these incidents, Bharti was careful to announce that Easy Day stores would employ people from the local communities in Ludhiana and would be trained at the Bharti Academy of Retail set up specifically for the purpose.

A company spokesperson brushed aside any suggestions of protest apprehensions, saying this was a “soft launch” and the consumer response was “phenomenal” on the first day itself.

Easy Day stores stock personal care products, stationery, household articles, hosiery items, daily-need groceries including staples, processed foods, bakery and dairy products, meat and poultry and fresh produce.

Though there was no word on how Bharti has priced its wares at Easy Day, Wal-Mart’s reputation of driving down prices is well-known and the Giant of Bentonville always works on “Every Day Low Prices” concept.

It remains to be seen whether Bharti is as successful as its partner at offering products at the lowest possible price points.