• The New York Times, Friday, March 2, 2007 11:30 AM

After a tumultuous year of experimentation, abrupt reversals and admissions of missteps, Wal-Mart Stores has a new -- and so far internal -- definition of what it stands for: "Saving people money so they can live better lives." The rallying cry will soon become a public strategy, evident on the shelves of its 4,000 stores and in nationwide ads.

After a year of intense research, the discount giant now sees its 200 million customers as belonging to three groups. There are "brand aspirationals" (people with low incomes who are obsessed with names like KitchenAid), "price-sensitive affluents" (wealthier shoppers who love deals) and "value-price shoppers" (who like low prices and cannot afford much more).

For the first time, Wal-Mart thinks it finally understands not just how people shop at its stores, but why they shop the way they do. And the company is now focusing more on consumers that already shop at Wal-Mart, rather than on people executives would like to have as customers.

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