The site's observer studied the history of Wal-Mart, which has been criticized more than once and found itself at the center of scandals, made its founder richest man in the United States and is rumored to have influenced American politics by financing presidential campaigns.

Sam Walton, the creator of Wal-Mart, was born into an ordinary farming family. Since childhood, he was distinguished by his abilities, activity and desire to achieve success in all matters he undertook.

According to Walton, ambition was instilled in him by his mother, who wanted her children to achieve much more than she did. Be that as it may, having received such an impetus, the future entrepreneur achieved success in all his endeavors, and this despite the fact that Sam was a member of almost all school clubs, played sports, earned money by delivering newspapers and helped his parents in every possible way.

Walton was a leader among his classmates and one of the school's top students. His teachers loved him and had high hopes for him. In general, reading his early biography, many analysts call him a kind of cover guy: an excellent student, a scout, a state champion in American football, a participant in almost all school extracurricular clubs. Perhaps the only negative moment in the entrepreneur’s childhood was the relationship between his parents, who got along with difficulty, and their discussions in most cases developed into quarrels.

According to the entrepreneur himself, at school he tried to demonstrate his abilities one hundred percent, and he succeeded: Walton became one of the best students in the state. Naturally, with such a track record, Sam had no difficulty entering the University of Missouri, where the future entrepreneur entered one of the best fraternities at the university, and a year later he was appointed responsible for recruiting new members, interviewing potential candidates from all over the state.

According to Walton, while studying at the university, he came up with the ambitious idea of ​​becoming the President of the United States, however, he decided to take smaller steps towards such a global achievement, first taking a similar post in the student council. The future entrepreneur realized that in order to achieve what he wanted, he must achieve much greater recognition and fame among students. Walton approached this problem in a non-trivial way: he nominated himself for various positions in the student parliament and got to know all the students he met on campus. Thus, he soon knew almost all the students. Fame and hard work helped Walton take about five positions in the student council during his senior year and the position of president of the university's reserve officer training organization. At the same time, he still remained an excellent student.

During his senior year, Sam became interested in business, and retail in particular. Walton has been able to sell since he was a teenager. During the Great Depression, when his parents were going through hard times, the boy set up his own mini-business, distributing newspapers. In order to do more, he even hired assistants and ended up earning about $5 thousand a year, which was a substantial amount for those times.

After graduating from university, Walton seriously thought about whether to continue his studies, but in the end he went to work in a chain of stores as a manager. Despite the fact that the position did not look very prestigious, Sam remained himself, becoming one of best sellers, at the same time having studied the peculiarities of the work of such stores from my own experience. In 1942, the future entrepreneur was almost drafted into the army, but it turned out that he had heart problems and was not suitable for the front. He was eventually drafted, but never became a combat officer—instead, he did what he described as boring things like overseeing the security of industrial plants.

During his service, the future entrepreneur had the opportunity to study work retail chains and the basics of store management. He borrowed literature from the library and also purchased it from bookstores. After demobilization, Walton, on the advice of an old friend, turned his attention to the Butler Brothers chain. Young and self-confident, he went to them, wanting to purchase a franchise. The deal cost him approximately $25 thousand. Here he completed a special training course for aspiring store managers. At the insistence of his wife, who did not want to live in a metropolis, Walton opened a small general store in Newport, Arkansas. It was difficult to achieve immediate success in this field. The main reasons were the high cost of rent and fierce competition with a neighboring store, whose owner earned almost twice as much as Walton.

In addition, the entrepreneur was dissatisfied with the work of the franchise, which consisted of a whole range of requirements - for example, the need to order about 80% of goods from them, otherwise the store would not receive discounts, a standardized price level that did not allow real competition, and constant checks. In the end, Walton's patience ran out, and he began to gradually violate the terms, while doing it very carefully, realizing that the contract he had signed due to inexperience could become a dangerous weapon against his business. At the same time, the entrepreneur begins to develop new method attracting clients. To do this, he places a popcorn machine near the store. After some time, the same one was added to it, but with ice cream. Two years later, Walton was able to return the $20 thousand invested in the business. Things were clearly going well, but the entrepreneur did not intend to stop there.

Upon learning that one of his competitors had decided to expand their business into retail space in the same building as Sam's, Walton secured the transfer of the space to himself. It eventually became Sam's second store on this street. The expansion, naturally, led to an increase in staff and attracted the attention of the building owner. It turned out that Walton, when signing the lease, did not include a clause on its automatic renewal after the end of the term. The owner of the building used this detail: he refused further cooperation and, knowing full well that Sam had no other options for locating the store, made him an offer to buy the business. The entrepreneur was forced to agree, and his brainchild soon became a gift to the homeowner's son. In the future, this failure will force Sam to sign contracts much more carefully to avoid similar mistakes.

The entrepreneur's first business allowed him to understand the basic mechanisms of working in retail trade. As a result, he was able to transform them into “Walton's Laws,” which consist of a system of purchasing directly from suppliers, constant sales and discounts, and customer focus.

In the early 1950s, Walton found himself without a business, but with $50 thousand. Sam opened a new store with his brother named Budd in the city of Bettonville. This time, the entrepreneur did not sign short-term lease agreements, instead wanting to conclude a deal for 99 years. The owners of the building were in no hurry to respond to Walton’s proposal, who, among other things, wanted to acquire the premises of a hairdressing salon located in the same building. The agreement was concluded by the entrepreneur’s father-in-law, who supported his son-in-law in all his endeavors. The store eventually became known as Walton's Five and Dime.

The main feature of Walton’s new business was self-service: until that moment, there were only a few similar establishments in the country, and those were in megacities. That is why it is not surprising that a crowd came to the opening, buying everything with unprecedented enthusiasm. It is worth noting, however, that later the store’s business did not improve as quickly as the entrepreneur would have liked. At the end of the year, his income was about $30 thousand, which is much less than it was in Newport (about $250 thousand). Walton was not upset: his only desire was to build his own network, and he had the ideas and capabilities to realize his plan.

A year later, several more stores were opened in nearby cities. The approach was the same: a large area, a variety of products, flexible prices and self-service. The entrepreneur himself liked to tell how, while opening in Fireville, he heard in a conversation of one couple that the store would not last longer than a few months. At the same time, Walton, already in a stronger position than at the beginning of his career, continued to cooperate with the Butler Brothers franchise, and specifically with their Ben Franklin line of stores.

By the early 1960s, Walton owned 15 establishments in several states that generated $1.5 million in revenue. The crown jewel of his holdings was a store in the Ruskin Height shopping center, located right in the heart of one of the first shopping centers in the country: it attracted a huge number of customers every day. In addition, it was thanks to him that Walton appreciated the prospects more big business, deciding to open his own shopping center.

This store was ultimately seriously damaged by a tornado and, although it was eventually rebuilt, it did not return to its former glory, and the entrepreneur, gradually expanding the network, began to pay less attention to it. In the late 1950s, Sam dreamed of opening a large family store in which he could introduce his inventions. In an attempt to realize his plan, Walton turned to Butler Brothers, hoping to get the company as a partner and supplier, but was refused: the brand’s management considered the project risky.

Realizing that he will have to rely only on himself, the entrepreneur is searching for the most successful place to locate his first large store. As a result, he chose the city of Rogers in Arkansas. He could not settle here with Ben Franklin due to the clear regional division of its representatives. There was already a franchise store owner in this city who refused to cooperate with Walton.

Having received no help, the entrepreneur made the only right decision - to start the business on his own. To this end, he took out a large loan from a bank and got to work. The store was opened in 1962; the businessman thought about the name for quite a long time, eventually choosing Wal-Mart. Representatives of the Ben Franklin franchise reacted negatively to the opening, who visited Walton on the opening day, demanding that such stores never be opened in this city again.

The entrepreneur did just that, after some time opening two Wal-Marts in neighboring cities. At the same time, the concept of organizing stores gradually changed. The first Wal-Marts were discounters, meaning they aimed to provide customers with the lowest possible prices. Subsequently, the network grew, and with it new directions appeared, such as supercenters, which provide the opportunity to purchase all kinds of goods: from groceries to tools, as well as district stores. This whole system was designed to catch the client in the giant's network and make him a regular customer.

Initially, Wal-Mart stores did not carry them yet. key features: the goods were placed sloppily (Walton himself would later say that they were scattered); there were no “Walton rules” that would become immutable for the network. But it was about 20% cheaper than its competitors - needless to say, this is what most people were interested in. However, something had to be done about product placement. To quickly solve this problem, a categorization system was introduced.

Another problem for the company in the early stages was finding suppliers. While working with Butler Brothers, Walton rarely encountered supply problems - but now he was caught in something of a circus. While building a brand that sold a huge number of products, he needed a constant increase in assortment and flexible discounts. Instead, executives were forced to call the offices of large brands to remind them about themselves. A certain part of the goods was generally purchased from random suppliers whom we encountered from time to time. Things were even worse with discounts: large brands seemed to offer them only if bills were paid within ten days.

Among other things, we had to keep prices lower than those of our competitors. Walton was relentless in this regard: he forbade increasing the purchase price by more than 30%, knowing full well that this was the key to victory. Pricing for cosmetics and medicines was even more flexible.

The entrepreneur, given the number of Wal-Mart and its other stores, already managed a fairly large network, and he had to start keeping more careful accounting. For this purpose, appropriate specialists were hired, but Walton did not rely solely on them, taking an active part in the audit process. At the same time, he trained the directors of his stores to send him brief daily reports, which contained information about sales levels and consumer demand.

Understanding perfectly the specifics of trade, the head of the company gave orders to local managers, helping them increase sales, change product placement, and much more. If his presence was necessary in a certain store, he did not waste time and sat at the controls of his own aircraft. Thus, each of the directors felt a connection with Walton and understood that his boss was in control of the process.

It is worth noting that the entrepreneur did not go too far in control, allowing managers to independently come up with a product promotion model. One day, one of the chain store directors purchased washing powder in a larger volume than required. Walton did not criticize him, but provoked him by asking how he was going to sell it. To prove his acumen, the manager took an original step: instead of distributing the powder on the shelves, he resorted to such a technique as an exhibition and sale. He ordered the goods to be placed in a huge pyramid, which could be seen from different ends of the store. People began to come to the store just to see this building. Needless to say, in the end the powder was literally swept away. In the same way, the brand sold other products purchased in bulk and at a serious discount.

Here it is worth focusing on personnel selection. Walton selected store managers and salespeople in a unique way, luring promising consultants from other stores. An entrepreneur would go to a large store, announce that he was going to buy something, and then wait for them to try to sell him the product. If the applicant was suitable, an official offer was made to him, including such pleasant bonuses as career growth (from salesperson to director), as well as the possibility of subsequently receiving a percentage of sales.

In addition, directors could invest money in their own stores (although the amount was not very large: in the late 1950s it did not exceed $1000). It is worth noting, however, that the network always emphasizes the possibility of career growth for all employees, but at various stages of its existence there were problems with this. For example, Lee Scott, who eventually became general director network, I had to wait 14 years for a promotion. By the way, it is he who will try to eliminate shortcomings in this undoubtedly important area.

In the early stages of Wal-Mart's work, the company relied on two pillars: sales exhibitions like the one described above and constant improvements. We took into account all the facts, from the popularity of our own products to the study of the strengths and weaknesses of competitors. The latter were a kind of textbook for Walton: what is worth implementing and what cannot be done. Reminding store managers to learn from competitors became Walton's calling card, often starting conversations with staff there.

Another feature of the brand’s corporate culture is self-criticism. At each meeting of management, directors, in addition to their achievements, had to point out failures and minor mistakes, proposing ways to solve them. Walton himself began this process.

As the staff developed, so did the network. In 1967, there were already more than 20 Wal-Marts in the United States, and sales reached $12 million. The development of the chain led to a wider implementation of the rules that Walton had developed since his university days. One of the key ones was the so-called three-meter principle. Each sales consultant, being at a distance of three meters from a potential buyer, was obliged to look him in the eyes and offer help.

The second most important principle was the departure from working with intermediaries. Walton was irritated by high prices from suppliers early in his entrepreneurial career. As Wal-Mart grew, it decided to completely cut out the middlemen who artificially raised prices. Initially, this approach looked disastrous, given the supply difficulties the network was experiencing. With the growth of Wal-Mart, the situation changed, and most manufacturers were ready to contact Walton on their own, realizing the benefits that cooperation would bring.

Later, the scale of the network will reach such a size that its management will be able to control some manufacturers, forcing them to increase the production of certain types of goods, change packaging, reduce prices, or prohibit them from selling products to other networks. The brand will be criticized a lot for this.

Another conceptual feature of Wal-Mart was the opening of chain stores in small towns. This approach seemed quite strange, given the size of the stores and the volume of products. However, Walton understood that in small towns, where people mainly deal with small stores, there are not always enough necessary goods, and the prices for certain exclusives are much higher. That is why, by opening Wal-Mart here with affordable prices and a wide selection of products, the entrepreneur easily received the majority of customers.

Walton is still criticized for this approach, because, according to analysts, it dealt a blow to small businesses. The entrepreneur himself reacted quite restrainedly to such accusations. In his autobiography, he notes that he did not destroy anything, and small traders can compete, but to do this they need to choose a narrower niche and work. The decline of small mom-and-pop stores due to the chain's arrival in town has been called the "Wal-Mart Effect." This phenomenon is often parodied in American animated series - such as "The Simpsons" or "Family Guy".

In 1970, Wal-Mart was not yet a single company: in fact, it was several dozen stores united under the same name, but with different owners. The affiliation of the stores to the chain was expressed in the fact that the majority of each of them belonged to Walton. At the same time, the entrepreneur, actively expanding his business, borrowed from banks, and in the early 1970s the amount of debt reached a dangerous level of $20 million. Something urgently needed to be done about it. Following legal advice, Walton finally began to consolidate the disparate stores into a company, achieved debt restructuring, and began preparing for the companies' first public offering, which occurred in 1972.

Thanks to the emergency measures taken financial position brand improved significantly, and the company was able to strengthen its position. In the next three years after the public offering, Wal-Mart's growth in the United States continued: in 1975, the chain already had 125 stores. Gradually, other US networks were forced to recognize the emergence of a major player.

An important factor in the development of the network was the correct selection of store locations. Walton himself has said more than once that he prefers to inspect the premises on his own. At the same time, there was no universal formula, and when choosing a premises, the characteristics of the city and its population were first taken into account.

It is impossible not to note the attitude of the network’s management towards advertising. At the beginning of the brand’s work, this direction took a minimum of funds. Usually it was just an advertisement in the newspaper that announced the opening of a store. In fact, in this case, the brand’s popularity, the availability of a huge number of goods and low prices worked, which residents of neighboring towns quickly learned about: they were ready to come for shopping, despite the distance of Wal-Mart. Walton notes several times in his autobiography that he received many letters in which people begged to open stores in their city. Sometimes the entrepreneur was even offered buildings that might suit him. In short, the network, which might not have been known in big cities, was very popular and well-known in the provinces.

In addition, Wal-Mart is known for its original approach towards employees. In 1971, a system was introduced according to which every employee who has worked for the network for a year (at least 1000 hours) receives additional percentage accruals to their salary, which they can withdraw after dismissal.

In 1977, the chain's growth rate reached 50 stores a year, and, according to many company employees, each new opening was completely different from the previous one. It was Walton's rule that it was necessary to adapt to the needs of people in a particular city, and not vice versa. This rule said that the client is the real boss of every employee of the company and everything should be focused on him. During the same period, the brand, which for a long time developed only on our own, began making his first acquisitions. A small chain of Mohr-Value stores, operating in Missouri and Illinois, was purchased.

A major milestone for the company in 1983 was the opening of Sam's Clubs in response to the emergence of smaller merchants. Seeing a niche in this, the entrepreneur launched a kind of centers for wholesale trade. The only requirement for those wishing to use their services was a subscription fee of $40.

In the early 1980s, the brand's key focus area was the Southeast of the United States, where the company tried its best to achieve leadership by opening stores and acquiring smaller chains. In 1985, the goal was actually realized: the chain included almost 900 stores, and more than 10 thousand people worked in it. At the same time, management stopped setting regional goals for itself, striving to achieve leadership throughout the United States.

At the same time, Walton tried to create in the company corporate culture, based on rivalry between different departments, the presence of various rituals and free relationships between management and employees.

In 1985, the dispute that Walton lost became public knowledge. The bet was a Hawaiian dance on Wall Street, and David Glass (three years later he would head the company), who wanted to have fun, did not allow his boss to do it as secretly as possible. The top manager hired an entire ensemble to play a Hawaiian tune, and 67-year-old Walton, wearing a Hawaiian shirt and skirt over his suit, was forced to dance under the close attention of onlookers and the press. The next day, photographs of the founder of a large chain performing a dance were on the front pages of all publications. In the same year, Walton topped the Forbes ranking for the first time as the richest person in the United States.

Not every aspect of the company seemed as relaxed. For example, problems emerged with the integration of employees who received higher education. It is worth clarifying here that many of the network workers were primarily master traders who studied at best case scenario in parallel with work, wanting to achieve higher positions in the company. The growing popularity of the brand has attracted the attention of another type of worker - yesterday's students who want to reach the top of their careers at Wal-Mart. The brand's management emphasized and emphasizes that both categories of employees are important, but the problems in their relationship were not completely resolved.

By the late 1980s, the network was already operating in 27 states and began to spread its influence in large cities. In 1988, Wal-Mart opened in Washington. This event gave rise to an extraordinary reaction from the K-Mart chain, which decided to get involved in fierce competition with Walton's company. Their struggle would become the leitmotif of the early 1990s. In the same year, Sam Walton left the post of CEO, handing it over to David Glass.

Walton's departure initially had little effect on the development of the network, because the founder and long-time head of the company remained involved in many matters. He is credited with the speedy implementation information system WalMart, which allowed the entrepreneur to connect all the brand’s stores in the country (almost 1.5 thousand), suppliers and distribution centers. It was its implementation, according to some analysts, that was the key factor in Walton's company's victory over K-Mart.

David Glass, having taken the position of head of the company, in addition to total success and the position of market leader, was faced with the problem of the lack of a flexible strategy for the brand. In the USA, the network’s position was extremely stable, but to move to other countries, the model required improvement. For some time, the chain's management considered the possibility of selling the franchise abroad, but then it became clear that some conceptual features of the brand could not be implemented without the direct participation of management. The idea was discarded, and preparations began for independent integration into other countries. A standardized approach was chosen: opening subsidiaries in different parts of the world, followed by the launch of brand stores and the acquisition of local mini-chains for simplified integration.

Wal-Mart initially entered Canada and Latin America. By 1997, the brand had about 1,000 stores. At the same time, work began on entering the European market. To quickly integrate the company into Germany, the giant acquired 21 local stores in 1998. trading network Wertkauf. In 1999, Wal-Mart entered the UK using the local Asda chain. At the end of 1997, the network was already present in China, Indonesia and other emerging markets. To transfer its corporate culture to other countries, the company began the usual employee exchange for such brands, sending US workers to its foreign branches.

The growth of the network and its access to international markets didn't save the company from the series high-profile scandals. They began under Walton, who did not seek to pay his employees much, although at the same time promising them various bonuses. Glass's rise to power changed little in this approach, but subsequently the difficult working conditions in the company's stores increasingly became a topic of discussion.

In the mid-1990s, Wal-Mart executives were accused of low wages, long hours, and gender discrimination. In 1999, the company's workers' union accused that the wages of ordinary workers were below the subsistence level. The statement caused a wave of criticism from society and caused enormous damage to the brand. Glass tried to justify himself, but his actions did not have much effect. In 2000 he was forced to resign. He was replaced by Lee Scott, who had previously worked for different positions companies.

The board of directors tasked the new CEO with restoring the brand's reputation and eliminating the company's unprofitable subsidiaries. A year after Lee Scott arrived, the company faced a new wave of criticism. At this time, the book “Counting Pennies: How to (Not) Make Ends Meet in America” was published, which soon became a bestseller. The author of the book managed to work in Wal-Mart stores, so she knew the situation in the company from the inside.

By describing working conditions and pay with unflattering words, the writer further complicated the situation. The brand began to be actively criticized in the press - primarily due to the fight against trade unions: if the chain’s management found out that a similar organization had appeared in one of the stores, the staff was simply fired. This approach allowed many publications to equate work in the brand’s stores to slave labor.

The situation at the company became even more complicated when several of its employees filed lawsuits alleging gender discrimination. The first person to sue was former saleswoman Betty Dukes, who was one minute late from lunch. For this offense, she was either reprimanded or even fined (different sources say differently). Men who worked online were not punished for this. When lawyers took over Dukes' case, it turned out that everything looked even more dire.

Ultimately, nearly 2 million plaintiffs joined the case (other sources put the number at 1.6 million) with similar allegations, added to the promotion of men over women. The consideration of the case with all appeals ultimately took almost 11 years. The result was disappointing for the plaintiffs: the court refused to recognize the claim as a collective one, and the case was closed. The victims still have the opportunity to try their luck in court, but this time separately.

Scott had to deal with a huge number of claims and fines, who set about organizing the work of the brand’s legal department. At the same time, he had to become a public figure and actively comment on this or that situation. He learned to respond to criticism and began to appear more often in various shows, which gave him the opportunity to immediately respond to any change in the situation.

Scott's next focus was cost reduction. At that time, Wal-Mart had several problem regions, including Germany (the brand was losing almost a hundred million dollars a year here) and South Korea, where the company also suffered serious losses. Ultimately, both of these areas were sold in 2006.

Scott also made some minor adjustments to the brand's public reputation. At first, the company’s campaign aimed at helping those affected by Hurricane Katrina was especially popular. Wal-Mart actually sent convoys of aid trucks there. The next step was the speech of the head of the company that he was not at all against increasing the salaries of all employees, but could not do this due to high competition. The ambiguous statement led to unexpected consequences: there is still a version that the company lobbied for a law to increase wages for retail workers. Rumors that the brand influences US politics stem from the fact that it partially financed both of George W. Bush's presidential campaigns.

The company was still considered very disloyal to its employees and did not even strive to improve working conditions - Scott never managed to get rid of the bad reputation.

Another important achievement of Scott's role as head of the company was the search for new effective ways cheaper goods. The move was a natural response from the brand's management to the increasingly popular perception that Wal-Mart is no longer the cheapest chain. Scott responded by creating a special department dedicated to international purchasing. Soon, serious success was achieved in this area - largely thanks to the establishment of relationships with manufacturers from China, where a significant part of imports comes from. Currently the brand has more than 50 purchasing departments in different countries worlds.

In 2006, another extraordinary event occurred - the sale of cheaper substitutes for brand-name drugs in WalMart stores. This was preceded by an announcement that these products were in no way inferior to their analogues, but their manufacturers did not charge money for the brand.

In 2008, a new scandal broke out. A worker was trampled to death in one of the chain's stores. The case happened during the next sale before the holidays, when more than two thousand buyers rushed into the store. The victim's relatives insisted that the cause of his death was the network's disregard for its employees. The high-profile case nearly led to restrictions on the number of shoppers who could enter Wal-Mart at one time.

In 2009, Lee Scott left the post of CEO, handing it over to another longtime Wal-Mart executive, Michael Duke. The new leader left the company in excellent condition: its turnover was about $400 billion, its public image was much better than before Scott arrived. The only problem remained court hearings regarding gender discrimination, which ended only in 2011.

Duke was to continue Scott's policy of further integration into other countries of the world. It was expected, for example, that new chapter will continue the protracted expansion into Russia, which was discussed back in 2007. The retailer failed to achieve much success in this field. According to rumors, the giant was negotiating with several networks within the country in order to simplify work in the market at the first stages, but no agreements were reached. In 2010, it became known that the network abandoned plans to integrate into Russia.

In 2011, the chain acquired a 51% stake in Massmart Holdings, which opened its doors in a number of African countries: according to analysts, the low cost of goods will allow the company to achieve leadership in this market.

In 2012, the brand found itself at the center of another scandal. Information about the bribery of Mexican officials by the local management of the brand has become public knowledge. This helped the company achieve record levels in the region and increase the number of chain stores. They even named the specific amount of bribes - $24 million. Duke announced the start of an internal investigation to identify violators of American and Mexican laws.

At the same time, the brand faced a problem. Back in 2007, expansion into India was supposed to begin, but strikes by the country's citizens, who believed that the arrival of the giant would completely destroy the economy, forced them to wait. In 2010, an ambitious goal was set - to achieve leadership positions in the country within five years. However, after starting to operate in India, the retailer was faced with public protests, difficulties in negotiations and delays in the process of completing the necessary paperwork. As a result, already in 2013 it became clear that achieving the goal within the chosen time frame would be virtually impossible due to the low rate of expansion.

That same year, Michael Duke decided to leave his post. Under his leadership, the giant's profits grew by 16% and its share price by 40%. At the same time, many analysts do not consider the period of his leadership revolutionary, pointing out that the growth of indicators is a completely predictable process, and Duke failed to solve the problems with brand expansion, given the failures in Germany, Korea, Russia and India.

Doug McMillon became the company's new CEO. Like his predecessors, he worked for a long time in the company and therefore knew first-hand about its strengths and weaknesses. He officially started work in February 2014. During his reign, the company continued the war in one of its main areas - online sales. In this market, the giant has a serious competitor - Amazon, which is much better adapted for working on the Internet, with stable service and a proven operating model.

Wal-Mart does not yet have such a strong position here, but analysts believe that the company will win sooner or later, for which it will have to invest heavily in improving services, advertising and bonuses for customers. There is also the opposite opinion: that the retailer will not be able to adapt to a more flexible market due to its colossal size.

In addition, Wal-Mart has not yet been able to create a successful delivery system like Amazon. Although at times the company implements original ideas. In 2013, for example, the chain stores introduced a system of discounts for customers who agree to deliver goods to their neighbors who ordered purchases online.

The development of Wal-Mart's online services continues, and in December 2015, information appeared about the launch of the brand's own payment system - Walmart Pay, which will be officially introduced in the United States in 2016. Meanwhile, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos is rumored to be seriously interested in offline business, which will force the two giants to switch roles, because Wal-Mart has the strongest position in this area.

From 2012 to 2014, there were several major strikes by Wal-Mart workers related to low levels of wages and poor working conditions. As a result, in 2015 it was finally announced that the pay level would be increased to $9 per hour, and a year later - to $10.

That same year, it was announced that the company's profits would fall by 12% next year. The brand's management explained that the decrease was caused by investments in online trading, improving working conditions for workers, as well as improving the operation of stores in order to increase the number of customers. Analysts managed to react negatively to such brand actions, calling them ineffective. In 2015, the brand continued to work aimed at increasing profitability. The profitability assessment was completed in early 2016, after which McMillon announced the closure of 269 of the brand's stores, most of which are in the United States.

At the moment, the giant still remains the largest retail chain in the world, with more than 10 thousand stores across the planet. The company's position in the US seems unshakable, and even the famous $20 billion valuation in 20 minutes did not seriously harm it.

Of course, Wal-Mart has its drawbacks: problems with expansion, struggles with Amazon, and frequent criticism from society. However, all of them are solvable, taking into account the level of capitalization and influence of the network. According to many analysts, the only thing that can destroy Wal-Mart is itself, or rather, its gigantic size. It is unknown whether a huge brand with an ossified system of work will be able to develop in an increasingly volatile market, where every day it is necessary to be prepared for rapid transformations.

Wal-Mart is an American retail company that operates the world's largest retail chain operating under the Walmart brand. Headquarters are in Bentonville, Arkansas. The company ranks 1st in the Fortune Global 500 (2010).

About 50% of the shares in Wal-Mart stores belong to the heirs of the company's founder, Sam Walton. Chairman of the Board of Directors is Robson Walton. Chief Executive Officer - Lee Scott. Hillary Clinton, wife of President Bill Clinton, served on the Wal-Mart board of directors from 1986-1992.

Walmart is the world's largest retail chain, which includes (as of 2012) more than 10,130 stores in 27 countries. These include both hypermarkets and supermarkets selling food and industrial goods. The chain's strategy includes such components as maximum assortment and minimum prices, tending to wholesale ones. Walmart's main competitors retail market USA - Home Depot, Kroger, Sears Holdings Corporation, Costco and Target chains. Walmart is a leader in the implementation of technologies related to the use of RFID tags in retail.

The total number of personnel of the company is 2.1 million people (January 2010). The company's turnover in 2009 was $405.0 billion (in 2008 - $401.2 billion), net profit - $14.33 billion ($13.4 billion in 2008), Operating profit- $23.95 billion ($22.7 billion in 2008).

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2018

Savings of $200 million after switching to LED lighting

On October 16, 2018 it became known about reduction of annual expenses of Walmart by $200 million in connection with transition to LED lighting (LED). The world's largest retailer saved another $20 million by using a new floor polish.

According to him, such a project is not only aimed at taking care of environment, but also allows the retail network to significantly reduce costs.

As CNBC notes, in the US alone, Walmart spends tens of billions of dollars on goods and services that the company does not sell in its stores, but uses itself. We are talking, for example, about tourism services and all kinds of spare parts. One of these things is floor polishing mastic.

Walmart's slogan is “Everyday Low Prices.” To follow this motto, the company needs to sell cheap goods, and for this it needs to save money itself. The fewer expenses Walmart has, the more shoppers save on purchases, CNBC reports.

In addition, Walmart is forced to save money due to the acquisition of companies. Thus, in 2018, it acquired a 77 percent stake in the Indian retailer Flipkart for $16 billion. In connection with this transaction, Walmart worsened its earnings forecast for the 2019 financial year, including expenses of $0.25 per share related to financing the purchase leader of the Indian e-commerce market.

Online cinema

American network retail stores Walmart confirmed in July 2018 rumors that it intended to launch a video-on-demand (VOD) service as early as 2018. According to Advanced Television, the streaming service is planned to launch in the last quarter of 2018 through the Vudu platform, which operates on an advertising model. Walmart acquired this platform in 2010 for $100 million.

The service will provide access to a library of licensed TV shows, films and original programs at a lower price than key competitors Netflix and Amazon offer. Also, apparently, the possibility of launching the service on a free model supported by advertising is being considered.

Launch of virtual 3D shopping

At the end of June 2018, Walmart launched a 3D virtual shopping service on the Internet. In a special section on the retailer’s website, customers can “walk into” a designed apartment filled with items available for instant purchase. While exploring a home, buyers click on items they're interested in to get more information about them.

By the time the service was announced, there were about 70 products available there, both from third-party manufacturers and from Walmart itself. Mostly furniture and most important household goods are available. In the virtual apartment you can find a Microsoft Xbox One game console and a Samsung refrigerator, but it is not yet possible to select and order them.

In July 2018, Walmart will allow product groups to be added to cart so users can select multiple home decor items to purchase and imagine how they would look together.

Opening of the first high-tech mini-store

In early April 2018, Walmart launched what the company claims is its first high-tech mini-supermarket. In it, purchases can be paid through the messenger, and most products are also available for purchase via the Internet.

As the Reuters news agency reports, citing a statement from Walmart, this outlet, which is open in the southern part of the city of Shenzhen, offers more than 8 thousand products, including fresh fruits, fried mussels and much more. Visitors can pay for purchases using the WeChat messenger using their smartphones.

At the end of March 2018, Walmart and the Chinese holding Tencent entered into an agreement under which the American retailer began using the WeChat Pay service to pay for purchases in all its stores in the west of China. The supermarket in Shenzhen was the first in this project.

In addition to the ability to pay for products through a mobile application, the new point of sale is also interesting because about 90% of the entire assortment is available in the Walmart online store on JD.com, part of which is owned by the American giant in the field of online retailing.

All people coming to the Walmart smart supermarket, as well as JD.com users, can order delivery of purchased products. However, the store will only deliver goods to places located within a 2 km radius. It is claimed that delivery will be carried out in a maximum of 29 minutes.

Walmart is actively introducing new technologies into its retail network. So, at the beginning of 2018, about 100 grocery stores retailers received the Scan & Go service, which allows customers to scan product barcodes at mobile application and pay for purchases by phone. Thanks to the innovation, there is no need to stand in queues and use the services of cashiers. By the end of 2018, Scan & Go should be available in 200 Walmart supermarkets.

2017: Retailer Wal-Mart accelerated warehouse accounting with the help of robots

American retail chain

2013: Wal-Mart figured out what to do with big data

In May 2013, it became known that one of the largest retailers in the world, Wal-Mart, had found an interesting use for the so-called “big data”: Wal-Mart’s accounting systems accumulate data on transactions when purchasing goods and the list of items purchased by a specific person. Based on the analysis of this data, Wal-Mart intends to create individual shopping lists and send them using a mobile application.

Gibu Thomas Gibu Thomas, Wal-Mart's head of mobile technology, said this is just one of the initiatives aimed at increasing in-store sales through e-commerce. “The future of retail, paradoxically, is in its past, in creating personal interactive communication with each customer individually through smartphones,” he said. Citing an unnamed study of the US market, he also added that in-store shopping, fueled by mobile technology, could double the size of the e-commerce market in 2016.

Wal-Mart's head of mobile technology: " Best list purchases that do not need to be made"

On mobile devices already accounts for about a third of Walmart.com's traffic, according to Thomas. Moreover, those users who use the Wal-Mart app for smartphones visit the chain's offline stores more often than other shoppers and spend 40% more, he added. At the same time, the majority of network clients have smartphones at their disposal.

The Wal-Mart app already has a shopping list feature, but it requires user input. It also tells you where to find a specific product on the shelf and also provides digital discount coupons. Wal-Mart is also testing a system called “Scan and Go,” which works by having shoppers scan each item with their smartphone as they add it to their shopping cart, and then use their smartphone at checkout to check out. shopping.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) is an American company, the world's largest retail chain. Headquarters are in Bentonville, Arkansas. The company ranks 1st in the Fortune Global 500 (2010).
Founded in 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas by Sam Walton.
About 50% of Wal-Mart shares are owned by the heirs of company founder Sam Walton.
Chairman of the Board of Directors is Robson Walton. Chief Executive Officer - Mike Duke (since January 2009). Hillary Clinton, wife of US President Bill Clinton, was a member of the Wal-Mart board of directors from 1986-1992.

Wal-Mart is the world's largest retail chain, which includes (as of mid-February 2007) 6,782 stores in 14 countries. These include both hypermarkets and supermarkets selling food and industrial goods. Wal-Mart's strategy includes such components as maximum assortment and minimum prices, aiming for wholesale prices. Wal-Mart's main competitors in the US retail market are Home Depot, Kroger, Sears Holdings Corporation, Costco and Target.

Wal-Mart is a leader in the implementation of technologies related to the use of RFID tags in retail.
The total number of personnel of the company is 2 million people (2009).

The company's turnover in 2008 was $405.6 billion (an increase of 7%, in 2007 - $378.5 billion), net profit - $13.4 billion (an increase of 5.5%, $12.7 billion in 2007), operating profit - $22.8 billion (3.6% increase, $22 billion in 2007).

Events during Lee Scott's management period (2000-2009):

During this period, the network became the object of attention from the press and trade unions. In 2001, the book Counting Pennies: How to (Not) Make Ends Meet in America by Barbara Ehrenreich was published. This book described Wal-Mart from the inside and contained numerous descriptions of violations of workers' rights while working in the company.

During this period, the South Korean and German Wal-Mart projects were closed:

South Korean Wal-Mart project
There were 11 large retail stores operating in the South Korean market. Wal-Mart tried for several years to overcome the break-even threshold in the market, but the chain's administration was forced to admit defeat and sell outlets to a competitor. According to marketing experts, this store format has not become generally popular in the Korean market.
German Wal-Mart project
The company entered the German market in 1998 through the purchase of local retail chains Interspar and Wertkauf. According to experts, losses in this market amounted to $100 million annually.
On July 27, 2006, an official announcement appeared about the sale of 85 stores to Wal-Mart, employing over 11 thousand people; the total turnover of the retail cluster is? 2 billion per year. The buyer was Metro Group. The transaction amount was not disclosed by either the buyers or sellers, but Wal-Mart commented that 19 Wal-Mart hypermarkets were acquired as freeholds and the rest as leases. The new owner plans to open Real hypermarkets on the territory of the acquired stores.

Wal-Mart in Russia
Wal-Mart representatives have repeatedly emphasized the importance Russian market For the company. In September 2008, Wal-Mart registered a subsidiary entity in Russia - LLC VM Eastern European Holdings, LLC. This company joined the Association of Retail Trade Companies (AKORT), which is the main lobbyist for the interests of Russian retail chains.

The largest Russian retail chain in terms of turnover and revenue today belongs to the X5 Retail Group, which owns such chains as Pyaterochka, Perekrestok and Karusel. In December 2008, reports appeared in the press that Wal-Mart was negotiating the creation of a joint venture with X5 Retail Group - X5 would contribute Karusel stores to the joint venture, and Wal-Mart would invest in the further development of hypermarkets. X5 CEO Lev Khasis only noted that his company is “theoretically ready for a joint venture,” but does not comment on negotiations with Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart is one of the most influential companies in the retail industry. For more than 10 years, it has been recognized as the largest retail hypermarket chain in the United States. In addition, Wal-Mart's position is strong in other countries. Wal-Mart has been committed to a low price strategy since its founding. A strategy through which it can offer products cheaper than other competitors.

On the one hand, this is, of course, a huge plus for buyers. But on the other hand, this entails such consequences as low salaries for employees, the ruin of Wal-Mart’s smaller competitors (including local players), due to which many people lose their jobs. Finally, Wal-Mart is helping to lower the quality of some products in this eternal race for low prices.

At the same time, the quality of not only the goods sold at Wal-Mart suffers, but also those that challenged the company by abandoning it. They still have to make adjustments to their production process because Wal-Mart's low prices keep them from breathing freely. Wal-Mart dictates its terms to suppliers. Even as large as Procter&Gamble. Everyone doesn't like it, but there is no choice. But it all started with a smile...

Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton believed throughout his life that success can only be achieved through perseverance, continuous improvement and a friendly attitude towards customers and partners (=company employees). America remembers its hero with a constant smile on his face, greeting clients and talking with employees. Walton had a great goal, and he pursued it with his values ​​as a guide.

Youth

Sam Walton was born on March 29, 1918 in Kinfisher, Oklahoma. His parents were farmers, so his childhood could not be called simple, but it was certainly not very poor either. The only thing that greatly prevented the family from settling down was the Great Depression. Because of her, the Walton family constantly changed their place of residence along with their work.

Sam began working at the age of 7 as a morning newspaper delivery boy. In addition, the future founder of Wal-Mart was actively involved in sports - basketball and American football. Subsequently, he will remember that it was football that taught him how to play as a real team. It was there that he realized how he could compensate for his shortcomings at the expense of his partners.

After school, Sam Walton went to the University of Missouri, from which he graduated in 1940. His specialty was economics. After all, already at that time he showed great interest in retail trade. At the same time, he worked as a manager in a small company. All this was necessary experience for him. At 42, Walton was drafted into the army. True, not for war. Sam was diagnosed with heart problems, due to which he was sent to serve at one of the DuPont gunpowder factories. The service turned out to be successful, since it was there that Sam met a girl named Helen Robson, with whom he would live for the rest of his life. It must be said that marriage to Helen played a big role in Walton’s future, since her parents were quite wealthy people and gave the young couple a loan of 20 thousand dollars, which Helen and Sam used to purchase the first franchise, Ben Franklin.

The Ben Franklin store, located in Newport (Arkansas), quickly became very popular. Moreover, he managed to become a leader in the city, outselling his main competitor, Mr. Sterling’s store. Newport was a small town with only about 4 thousand people.

What was the success of Ben Franklin? Sam Walton's approach. He personally greeted every customer at the door. Moreover, it seemed as if the person had come not to an ordinary store, but to some hotel, where they intended to provide him with individual service. At the same time, Walton emphasized that the store was run by a family - he could talk to customers for a long time about the tricks of his son Robson. It was small town, and people liked this approach.

True, when success comes, envious people also appear. Five years have passed since Walton took over the Ben Franklin store. Moreover, his store was the most profitable among all the Ben Franklin stores. That is why her owner decided not to renew the contract with Sam Walton. He believed that the family's success was due to the fact that their store was located in a very convenient location. Therefore, you can manage it yourself without sharing income with someone. The further fate of this store is unknown, but this does not matter, since the Walton family decided to move to another city. It became Bentonville.

Birth of Wal-Mart

In this city, Sam opens his first store called Five & Ten Cents. That's when he turned his attention to a low-price strategy. To do this, Walton tried in every possible way to avoid intermediaries, purchasing goods from the manufacturers themselves. In addition, he lowered prices, making smaller profits than competitors. Sam Walton believed that it would pay off in the long run. He was right.

Over the course of 10 years, 10 Five & Ten Cents stores were opened. However, some of them are outside of Arkansas - in Missouri. During these 10 years, Walton devoted himself not only to his family, but also to the study of trade. He wanted to combine small family stores, where the sellers are their own owners, and huge supermarkets located in big cities. It was clear that he needed atmosphere from the former, and scale from the latter. At the same time, Walton not only read a lot, but most of all he liked to visit shops and supermarkets and note in his notebook interesting ideas who constantly got in his way.

It was then that Wal-Mart's future strategy was formed. The whole point was that it was simply impossible to open a large supermarket in a big city right away. Expensive land, labor, competition with large and rich companies - all these were factors that small provincials could not cope with. Walton thought, why not start by opening large supermarkets in small towns on the outskirts. The big players of that time did not look there. Rent was much cheaper, and labor was not as expensive as in the center of a big city.

In 1962, the first Wal-Mart store opened, then called Waltons Five & Dime. The store was located on the outskirts of the city of Rogers, and immediately attracted attention local residents. They all noted that it was a really large supermarket, like in big cities. But besides this, it differed from them in its low prices and the friendly atmosphere of a small family store. Finally, it is worth noting that the Walton family employed local residents in such stores, which further endeared them to the company. Subsequently, it turned out that several generations of a family worked at Wal-Mart all their lives. Hence the belief that Wal-Mart creates many new jobs. It was like that before, but not now.

Now the “Wal-Mart Effect” is manifested in the fact that after the arrival of the company, about 30 new jobs are created within 5 years. This is due to the fact that because of Wal-Mart, small stores cease to exist, supply companies are faced with a new problem - lower prices for Wal-Mart. Naturally, in an effort to reduce their costs, they fire some of their staff and sometimes transfer their production to China, which contributes to the layoffs of entire divisions.

Walton's stores delighted customers not just with low prices, but with very low prices. Quite quickly, the main idea of ​​the entire chain of stores became “Low prices. Constant sales." And people fell for this idea. Why not? If they sell us absolutely the same thing for less money!

By the way, it’s interesting why the stores got the name Wal-Mart. The thing is that initially it was planned to write the full surname of the family there, but the letters were too expensive, and therefore Sam Walton decided to save money by shortening the name to “Wal”. 5 years after the opening of the first Wal-Mart store, Sam Walton already had 24 stores. Annual income was $12 million. The network developed rapidly. The company tried to establish trusting relationships with its partners. After all, in the end, both of them wanted to increase sales, but to do this they needed to somehow lower the price. If we talk about today, then for many companies such cooperation with Wal-Mart to constantly lower prices sometimes turns into complete collapse and bankruptcy. However, does a giant like Wal-Mart really care about this?

Always at the forefront

An important characteristic of Sam Walton was that he always tried to be at the forefront. He personally visited all the company’s stores and listened to the employees. Walton sincerely believed that all the best ideas for stores come from company employees. Sometimes Sam decided to spend a working day with one of the company employees. He could just jump into one of the Wal-Mart drivers' trucks and drive around with them all day. Naturally, during such travels he found out everything he could from this employee. And I wrote down the most interesting ideas in a notebook.

For Walton, working in the fields was the norm. As it is now for the head of Euroset, Evgeny Chichvarkin. Without serious competitors in small towns, Wal-Mart was beginning to gain strength. The company created new jobs for people, sold them familiar goods at much more low prices, organized various kinds of donations. All this, of course, had a positive effect on her image. Besides, Sam Walton himself was a guy of the people. Even though he was very rich, he preferred to drive an old pickup truck and dress fairly simply. Sam was clearly indifferent to luxury.

The company's strategy was paying off. In the early 90s, Wal-Mart found itself more profitable business than the most popular supermarket chains - Sears and Kmart. And Sam Walton was recognized as the richest man in America. So imperceptibly, his network of stores enveloped the entire country.

Opening up on the outskirts, it occupied everything. In the 90s, Wal-Mart stores were everywhere. All over America. In small cities, and in million-plus giants. At this time, Sam Walton released his autobiography, in which he talks about the history of the company. In the same book, he formulated ten rules for doing business, which have become the Bible for businessmen from all over the world:

1. Be committed to the business.

2. Share profits with partners

3. Motivate your partners.

4. Discuss problems with partners.

5. Appreciate what your partners do.

6. Celebrate success.

7. Listen to each partner.

8. Anticipate customer expectations.

9. Control expenses.

10. Swim above the current.



It should be noted here that by “partners” Sam Walton means all employees of his company. In 1992, America's richest man received the Medal of Freedom from President George H. W. Bush. Sam Walton died that same year. He was 90 years old. Walton's fortune was divided between his wife and children. Today it is more than $100 billion. Despite the fact that the Waltons own 50% of the company.

Wal-Mart's success is simple - the right strategy. And perseverance. Persistence in obtaining low prices by any means necessary. Pressure on suppliers and deterioration in product quality are all costs that arise when Wal-Mart lowers prices. By opening on the outskirts, the company's stores received a competitive advantage - cheaper labor, low taxes, cheap land. All this contributed to the growth of Wal-Mart. Under such conditions, it could lower prices. When Wal-Mart turned its attention to big cities, it already had quite strong financial support behind it.

Finally, Sam Walton never sat in his office. He worked on the front line. I am constantly improving my stores. Walton always tried to listen to his employees and apply the best of their ideas to his business. In addition, he visited competitors' stores, copying their best ideas. Sam Walton was best summed up by his own phrase: “There is one boss - the customer. He can remove anyone in the company: from the director to the loader, by simply spending the money elsewhere.”

Sam Walton spent a lot of money on charity, he really improved life in America. However, his company never became a good icon for Americans. She always had opponents, who were often right in their claims. Since Sam Walton's death, Wal-Mart has changed. So large company problems appeared.

The Dark Side of Wal-Mart

The company was often blamed for changing the culture of small town America, leaving little stone unturned for small mom-and-pop stores. The way it is. True, it cannot be said that Wal-Mart outright destroyed them all. No. It was normal natural selection, as a result of which the smartest survived. The rest went into oblivion.

But Wal-Mart is influencing not only mom-and-pop stores, but also smaller chains. They close, which leads to layoffs. Other stores are cutting prices, leading to lower wages and more layoffs. The result is a rather interesting effect - Wal-Mart offers the lowest prices, but at the same time causes destruction. After all, no matter how low the prices are, without work there will still be nothing to buy anything with.

Finally, Wal-Mart is constantly fighting with suppliers to lower prices. And they have such an impact on the world that they leave even big brands like Gillette no choice. All this negatively affects the quality of goods. Wal-Mart also influences product design by making mandatory recommendations to companies.

In addition, it is known that the company does not Better conditions labor. Wal-Mart is a hard place to work, but it doesn't pay as well as it should. This is not counting various discriminations, when female employees were treated quite poorly in Wal-Mart stores, and some workers were forced to overwork by simply being locked in the store at night. Of course, Wal-Mart has long since paid huge fines for all these misdeeds. But this does not add anything good to the company's image. Wal-Mart is a giant that employs, for the most part, uneducated people from the outback. They studied with the company, they work in it all their lives. And they will continue to do so.

Wal-Mart's success is a huge effort to reduce costs. Work that is done every day. And it also has its price. Is this how Sam Walton saw the future of his company? Hardly. But that doesn't matter anymore. You may or may not love Wal-Mart. But one thing you can't do is ignore the effect this company is creating around the world.

In the late 1940s, when Sam Walton franchised the Ben Franklin General Store in Newport, Arkansas, he was concerned with a simple but important problem. Like any retailer, he was always looking for good deals from suppliers. Walton knew he could do better by increasing profits through more sales. This understanding would become the cornerstone of Sam's business strategy when he founded Wal-Mart in 1962. He clearly knew.

The pursuit of low prices was a natural goal for Walton. And although he was considered the richest man in the United States in the 1980s, he never gave a $5 tip to a local barber. Reducing costs was something of an obsession for him, and Sam sought to save not only on his personal expenses, but even on his managers. When sending employees on business trips, he exclusively purchased bus tickets for them, and always booked shared hotel rooms. Even a cup of coffee in the office cost 10 cents.

The influence of wages on the price of coffee

Walton realized that one of the main requirements for reducing costs was no wages. As he wrote in his 1992 autobiography, in the retail business, wages are one of the most important expenses that must be addressed in order to maintain desired profit levels. That is why he always fought the unions and almost always successfully.

But the entrepreneur's ability to keep his staff happy helped him in 1985 amid concerns about trade deficits and job losses in America. Sam started his "Made in America" ​​campaign to buy American made products. In 1971, he introduced a plan that allowed employees to receive a certain percentage of their salaries to purchase subsidized Wal-Mart stock.

How should an employee behave with a client?

No less important for Walton was the ability of employees to be able to sell goods. The workers were trained. He taught his managers that whenever a customer approached them, they should look him in the eye, greet him, and ask if there was anything they could do to help.

He stimulated employees by talking about improving leadership qualities through communication and, accordingly, career growth. Each person had the opportunity to rise from the position of an ordinary salesperson to a department, store or even regional manager.

He even introduced a symbolic oath. All employees, when hired, raised their right hand and said: “From this day on, I solemnly promise and declare that to every client who comes within three meters of me, I will smile, make eye contact and greet him.” As you know, the human factor is one of the main ones.

Competitive Advantages of Wal-Mart

Of course, Wal-Mart's success lies in more than just charisma and frugality. The management technologies used by this company have helped it stay ahead of its competitors. Already in the 1970s, Wal-Mart used computers to establish constant communication and accounting between stores and warehouses. It was at that time that active development began computer equipment, contributed by Apple Corporation and other companies.

Sales data allowed Wal-Mart to track items and reduce miscalculations and inventory errors. Throughout his career, Walton will focus on this type of innovation, making Wal-Mart a consistent leader in performance and growth.

Difficulties surrounding Walton's death

When Walton died in 1992, the company was in trouble, as Wal-Mart executives had emphasized for years that their firm depended on a set of principles and habits more than anyone else. His death changed the perception of this company.

Wal-Mart began to change after Walton's death. It was the same as at that time when the company was just developing its business. Wal-Mart's new leaders took to heart one element of the founder's business philosophy, the importance of cutting costs, but they failed to implement it, ignoring the importance of decision-making and frontline employees who, according to Sam, must have felt as if The future fate of the company depends on them.

With this move, management immediately put itself at a disadvantage. But still the company developed. Walton - great person, who managed to achieve a lot. Read about other successful businessmen.

Using a new strategy

Between 1997 and 2001, the company's share price increased by more than 500%. This undoubtedly helped reassure employees who were unhappy with the downturn earlier in the decade. Between 1996 and 1999, sales increased 78% and inventory grew 24%.

At this stage of its development, the decline in the popularity of weekly shopping in supermarkets forced Wal-Mart to turn its attention to small stores, which became its new strategy.

In addition, the American company decided to try its hand at the international online grocery market, where its competitor will be Amazon, whose investments in this sector are reaching significant volumes.