During this time, Sam gained early retail experience, eventually operating his own variety store. They chose Bentonville because Helen wanted small-town living, and Sam could take advantage of the different hunting seasons that living at the corner of four states had to offer.
Inspired by the early success of his dime store, and driven to bring even greater opportunity and value to his customers, Sam opened the first Walmart in at the age of 44 in Rogers, Arkansas. Sam's competitors thought his idea that a successful business could be built around offering lower prices and great service would never work. As it turned out, the company's success exceeded even Sam's expectations. The company went public in , and the proceeds financed a steady expansion of the business.
Sam credited the rapid growth of Walmart not just to the low costs that attracted his customers, but also to his associates. He relied on them to give customers the great shopping experience that would keep them coming back.
Sam shared his vision for the company with associates in a way that was nearly unheard of in the industry. He made them partners in the success of the company, and firmly believed that this partnership was what made Walmart great.
As the stores grew, so did Sam's aspirations. In addition to bringing new approaches and technologies to retail, he also experimented with new store formats—including Sam's Club and the Walmart Supercenter—and even made the decision to take Walmart into Mexico.
Sam's fearlessness in offering lower prices and bringing Walmart's value to customers in the U. His strong commitment to service and to the values that help individuals, businesses and the country succeed earned him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, awarded by President George H. Bush in It was during Sam's acceptance remarks that he articulated what would come to be Walmart's official company purpose.
Today, "saving people money so they can live better" is the driving force behind everything we do. Sam Walton believed running a successful business boils down to 10 simple rules and they helped Walmart become the global leader it is today. We continue to apply them to every part of our business.
Read his 10 rules for building a better business ». Sam Walton died in , shortly after receiving the Medal of Freedom, but his legacy lives on. To this day, Walmart remains a leader in the retail industry. We are committed not just to expanding the business to better serve our customers, but also to improving the communities we serve through our efforts to constantly improve what we do and how we do it, and through the impacts we're able to achieve through the Walmart Foundation.
Through this daily dedication to our business and our customers, we honor Mr. Walmart's history is more than just the stores we've built, the partnerships we've made and the customers we've served. So much of our history is in the details.
Sam Walton's strategy is built on an unshakeable foundation: the lowest prices anytime, anywhere. As Nelson Lichtenstein has observed, the decision to base operations in northwestern Arkansas insulated the company from civil rights —era efforts to desegregate businesses.
In , the company, now incorporated as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. By March of that year, Wal-Mart stock had undergone its first percent split and was trading at forty-seven dollars per share. It split again later that year, and yet again in August As Wal-Mart continued its rapid growth, it also made its first acquisition of other retail chains.
By the end of the s, Wal-Mart had expanded into a number of different services in its stores—selling pharmaceuticals, adding auto service centers, and introducing jewelry divisions.
As its stock continued to rise—splitting in and again in —Wal-Mart built dozens of new outlets across the United States. By , Wal-Mart had become a leader in the retail industry, and to celebrate the company meeting its fourth-quarter goals for the previous year, Walton fulfilled a promise made to shareholders by hula-dancing on Wall Street. He named David Glass as company president that same year.
Glass stepped down from his position as CEO in , and was succeeded by H. Lee Scott Jr. By , Wal-Mart sales had surpassed rivals such as Kmart and Target. In , the company made its first foray into the international market, opening Club Aurrera in Mexico City. In , the company gained access to lucrative emerging markets in China and South Korea. The following year, it replaced Woolworth on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, signaling its emergence as a significant force in the overall U.
Complaints also came from major manufacturers such as Rubbermaid, which claimed that Wal-Mart unfairly negotiated prices.
In , the company faced the largest class action suit in American history, as a group of female employees accused the company of discrimination against women in its promotion practices. Indeed, the critique of Wal-Mart developed, by , into a torrent of complaints and accusations. Several books and documentaries charged the company with numerous violations of the law, including denying employees overtime pay, locking workers overnight in its stores, contributing to environmental degradation and suburban sprawl, and supporting Asian sweatshop labor.
To combat increasing criticism, Wal-Mart launched an advertising campaign aimed at improving its image in early It also continued its considerable charitable contributions. Get more information and a free trial subscription to TheStreet's Retirement Daily to learn more about saving for and living in retirement. Email Robert. Powell TheStreet. Receive full access to our market insights, commentary, newsletters, breaking news alerts, and more.
I agree to TheMaven's Terms and Policy. By emphasizing store concepts that are widely associated with Walmart today, Walmart did stand out right away, especially in the following brand-building areas: Customer focused advertising campaigns particularly direct mail ads.
A focus on pricing controls mainly by purchasing and selling low cost imported goods. Building warehouses that were close to its stores, and thereby easier and cheaper to distribute. Walmart Timeline Walmart's history is dotted with memorable moments and history-making events.
Here's a timeline snapshot of Walmart over the past 57 years: Walmart opens its first store in Rogers, Ark. TheStreet Recommends. By TheStreet Staff. By Scott Rutt.
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