Sam Walton, in founding the Wal-Mart Corporation, not only changed the face of business in Arkansas but retailing and business as a whole on the planet. The Wal-Mart epic has been nothing short of a unique business phenomenon. Sam Walton single handedly turned a dying Ben Franklin Five and Dime store into a multi-billion dollar corporation without compromising his own ethics and morals, and became one of the world’s largest and most generous philanthropists and, for a time, the richest man in the United States of America. Wal-Mart has also been criticized for its effects on small town so called “mom and pop” businesses and several studies have been performed analyzing said effects. These small town effects can be expected when more than 93 million people a week (Slam-Dunking) flock to Wal-Marts around the country to shop their unmatchable prices. Of course, one of Wal-Mart’s keys to success has been their lack of competition. Wal-Mart did what their competitors would have never thought to do- build in rural areas where people are being forced to drive 20 to 30 miles to shop for groceries. Building in rural communities created an economic and social center for the community without the element of compet
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Also in 1983, Sam Walton’s idea that every person should be greeted upon entering Wal-Mart was brought to reality, and a people greeter was hired for every Wal-Mart store across the nation, which included four new states. Walton often sent Bill Fields to China on importing ventures, which gave him the resources and connections to found a company known as APEC Ltd. Wal-Mart’s uniquity in the business and retail world is undeniable. In 1978, Wal-Mart introduced its jewelry department, Wal-Mart Pharmacy, and automobile service center and made its second business acquisition- the Hutcheson Shoe Company. In 1988, the Walton’s brought to life “Mom and Pop’s” worst enemy, the Wal-Mart SuperCenter. So he began to breech the understood rules of a franchise and ordered merchandise directly from the manufacturers in order to undersell his competitors. A story that evolves into a multi-billion dollar corporation touching all corners of our planet began with a failing business in small town owned by a brilliant yet ordinary man from our own home state of Arkansas. Bill Fields, former CEO of Wal-Mart Stores and Wal-Mart employee for 25 years, attributed the company’s unique advantage to the “practices and philosophies Sam Walton built his business upon. This was also the year that Sam Walton introduced his infamous Wal-Mart cheer still heard today at shareholders meetings across the country. Sam Walton has forever changed the face of corporate America and changed the way in which retail business functioned. Through the financial and social genius of Sam Walton, and passionate employees like Bill Fields, Wal-Mart has become the world’s largest corporation and largest private employer. According to Fields, Walton’s and thus Wal-Mart’s unique philosophies that established his business as it is today can be summarized in four basic principles:
“I. No other company in the world has ever come from such meager, niggardly beginnings and evolved in to a Fortune 500 company earning $218 billion in the most recent fiscal year alone.
Approximate Word count =
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Approximate Pages =
7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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