The world's largest retail chain walmart. WalMart Success Story. Management innovation

Walmart Corporation is the largest retailer in the world. Volmart owns seventy brands and more than eleven thousand supermarkets, hypermarkets, supermarkets in almost thirty countries around the world. In particular, in the USA, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, China, Japan. The flagship online hypermarket Walmart.com, cannot but be of interest by definition. You can buy anything here by the fact that you can easily pay for the goods and send it to any forwarder. One of the few online stores that can seriously compete with a giant like Amazon.

Assortment, description and ordering

Clothing, shoes, accessories for every taste for all ages. Budget brands.
Electronics and home appliances for home and office, incl. Apple
Products for children of all ages and teens.
Everything for home repair.
Household chemicals. Health and beauty.
Everything for motorists.
Food.
Books and media products.
Much more.

The largest employer in the world, the largest trading network on the planet - you can talk about Walmart endlessly. She and entrepreneur Sam Walton, who founded it in 1965, are the living embodiment of this "American dream." The son of ordinary farmers, who opened the first store on borrowed money and became the richest man in the United States. Exclusively due to its hard work, creativity and ability to rise even after the most unexpected blows of fate. And her irony is everywhere, even in the fact that the name of the company - Walmart, formed from the name of the owner and founder, was deliberately reduced in order to minimize the cost of signage. Sam Walton Book: " Made in America. How I created Walmart"became a bestseller. Read it. There's a lot to learn.

Company motto: " Save Money. Live better"which in the free translation means:" Save and allow yourself more". And this concept has remained unchanged from the day it was founded. Why pay more? They know how to count money and value good quality. The philosophy of the American way of life.

As you know, avoiding the Internet representation of such a giant as Walmart is a bad manners. Indeed, it is Walmart stores that are more active than others by “storming” fans of sales on Black Friday and Christmas. And the online store will be interesting, first of all, to those who are used to spend rationally. The main "trick" of all Walmart stores is to offer the lowest prices, earn on turnover, and not on the margin, to receive goods directly from the manufacturer, bypassing intermediaries. By the way, a good half of the assortment is the products of trademarks owned by the company (for example, how Metro Cash & Carry sells products of its own brands Aro, Horeca, Rioba).

Pay special attention to such popular products among our compatriots as Barbie, Disney, Monster High dolls, Hot Wheels, pencils, markets and Crayola paints - all this can often be bought here much cheaper than on Amazon.com.

The assortment of online Volmart, as well as the traditional stores of this company is infinitely large. Here you can dress from head to toe and buy everything for the house, from furniture to utensils and household chemicals, a huge selection of goods for children, food, medicine. You can continue indefinitely.

The products presented in the catalog are not only offered by Walmart, there are many products from third sellers, as is customary on Amazon.com. But here they are usually big retailers. In the description of each product you will see who the seller is. Each of them has its own policy regarding delivery, return of goods, its own support service. Also, buyers can leave sellers reviews that form a rating.

A good third of brands will probably be unfamiliar to you. All for saving. Why pay for a well-known brand, if the goods can be purchased no worse without overpaying? This is the principle of Walmart, the success of which has been proven in practice.

Each item has customer reviews. Do not be lazy to read them. They are written by real people and contain a lot of useful information.

When choosing, also pay attention to informational announcements such as " best seller"(best seller)," reduced price"(price reduced)," clearance"(liquidation).

The store has a great variety of offers of various credit programs, payment cards, coupons and vouchers. But only residents of the United States can take advantage of all this. You will also be tried in every possible way to “connect” with the traditional, non-online Walmart located in the neighborhood, offering discounts and useful services.

Manufacturers

The goods here are sold from all over the world and one of the main suppliers, of course, is China. Quite a lot of goods produced in the USA. They are marked with a special icon. All of these are collected in the "made in America" \u200b\u200bsection.

Discounts and promotions

At Walmart.com, as in any self-respecting online store, there is a mandatory "offer of the day." You will find it Value of the day. It offers goods with significant discounts.

Payment

Bank cards Visa, Mastercard.
Payment system Paypal (the fastest and easiest way).

Delivery

Orders are shipped only to the United States. For purchases starting at $ 50, shipping is free. You can place your order yourself at the address of the forwarding company.

Support service

You can contact customer support by e-mail by filling out a special form or by phone in the USA: 1-800-966-6546.

Summary. Of course, a very interesting online store with honest low prices. Especially on Black Friday and before Christmas, you should definitely visit it. It is impossible to buy expensive here by definition. Fans of luxury brands will be disappointed; there are none at Wollmart.

Checkout

Now we will briefly, step by step tell you how to place an order at Walmart.com. But first, we’ll deal with the standard product description.

Heading. Product information.
The number of product reviews, a link to them and the overall rating of the product on a 5-point scale (stars).
Link to asked questions about the product and the ability to ask your own.
Manufacturer. By clicking on the link, you can view all of its products.
Price, additional information - in this case "Clearance" (liquidation with a final discount), terms of free delivery (order from $ 50).
Color selection.
Size selection.
The required quantity (Quantity) and the button "Add to cart" (add to cart).
"Add to registry" - in your profile you can create profiles of those who often give gifts, they will remind you of an upcoming event, you will pay for the goods and they will be sent to the right address. "Add to list" - you can create lists of products in your account, something like "favorites".
The seller of the product, in this case, Walmart.
The choice of delivery options (shipping) and the possibility of self-delivery from the store (Free Pickup).

After all the necessary products are added to the basket, click the orange "Proceed to Checkout" button and proceed to checkout. To get started, register as a new user. Click "Create Account".

Fill in a simple form with Latin letters (in English). If you want to subscribe to the newsletter and receive a digest of news and promotions, then check the box.

Enter the shipping address - "Shipping Address". For example, we fill out the form with the standard customer data forwarding company Shipito.com. Check the box that the payer address matches the delivery address ("Billing same as shipping").

Then the system will probably offer you to select the corrected address, show possible delivery options. At the final stage, you will need to enter the card details. Payment via Paypal upon delivery to the forwarder will not work, so choose card payment directly. Enter the first and last name exactly as indicated on the front side of the card, number, expiration date, security code (expiration date) - the last three digits on the back of the card. The payer's address here must also coincide with the delivery address.

Wal-Mart Stores is the largest retail chain not only in the US but also in the world. Wal-Mart has over 10,000 stores worldwide. The format of the stores: hypermarkets and supermarkets in which you can buy both food products and household goods - the company maintains the maximum range in its stores. Due to the huge turnover of Wal-Mart Stores, prices in its stores are much lower than the market average and almost equal to wholesale. The company's high turnover also allows Wal-Mart to dictate its terms to many suppliers of goods. Often, the arrival of a Wal-Mart store in a small city means the closure of all other stores in this city: not everyone can compete with the giant.

History of Wal-Mart

The story of Wal-Mart is the success story of its founder, Sam Walton. Sam Walton began his business by purchasing the franchise of the Ben Franklin store. In a few years, he turns his store into one of the best Ben Franklin chain stores. A few years later, Ben Franklin brand owner refuses to extend the franchise with Sam Walton. Sam Walton opens his stores under the brand name "Five & Ten Cents" and after a while the network of Five & Ten Cents is growing rapidly.

In 1962, in the city of Rogers, Arkansas, Walton opened his first store, which became the prototype for all stores of the Wal-Mart chain. The original name of the store is Waltons Five & Dime. It was a large supermarket where you could buy many household goods. A distinctive feature of Waltons Five & Dime was that it was opened on the outskirts of the city in a residential area. Subsequently, this approach to choosing a location for stores fully paid for itself.

The basic principle that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. did prosperous can be summarized as follows: all goods in one place at the lowest prices. In addition, Sam Walton himself insisted that the employees take the initiative: each proposal of the employees was considered and some were applied (for example, free parking at Wal-Mart stores, the possibility of rolling out a shopping cart with a car, etc.). Wal-Mart stores have a friendly atmosphere with respect to customers, which creates brand loyalty.

Despite the success of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in many markets around the world, in some countries, Wal-Mart stores have not taken root. In particular, in South Korea and Germany, Wal-Mart stores were sold to competitors. As for Russia, here at Wal-Mart Stores Inc. also having problems entering the market.

Initially, Wal-Mart wanted to enter the Russian market through the purchase of a ready-made distribution network. Negotiations were conducted with X5 Retail Group on the creation of a joint company, but they did not end with anything. The attempt by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. was also unsuccessful. to absorb the Lenta trading network. Nevertheless, the Russian market remains attractive to the giant and therefore we can expect its appearance in the near future.

Wal-Mart is the largest retail chain in the world with more than 10 thousand stores. In them, customers can purchase both food and household goods and household goods. Wal-Mart is America's absolute retailer. And all this thanks to the legendary Sam Walton - the creator of the Wal-Mart network. What he did in business is not for everyone. He himself believes that the secret of his success lies in his endless optimism, goodwill towards everyone around him (be it friends or enemies), and of course, the pursuit of excellence. Everyone who knew Sam speak of him as "a man with a constant kind smile on his face." How did he manage to make a huge global network from one store?

Sam's birth and childhood

Sam Walton was born in 1918 in Oklahoma. His parents worked on a farm, and the family did not have a stable high income, however, they did not live in poverty. In those years, the small provincial towns in America were very similar to each other: in the center there was a city hall, a medical clinic, a bank, a school, a post office and other institutions, and around them were small streets with residential buildings. When Sam was still a boy, his family moved to Missouri, a city that looked almost exactly the same as their hometown. In a new place, Sam began to play sports at a local stadium and go to a school of oratory.

Like many great businessmen today, Sam Walton began to earn money on his own very early - at seven years old he carried the morning press home. An important role in his life was played by sports. Thanks to them, Sam learned to work in a team and effectively interact with other players. In the future, it was this skill that helped him more than once in business.
After graduating from the University of Missouri, Sam began to work in the commercial field, often changing jobs. In one of the companies, he met his future wife, whom he soon married. It is time for military service. Due to a heart ailment found at Sam, he was forbidden to fully serve, however, he was sent to the military unit as the quartermaster (the person responsible for supplying the troops).

Opening of the first store

After returning to a civilian, Sam convened a family council, at which he planned to resolve the issue of his future activities. His wife's father was a fairly wealthy man, and Sam, deciding to use such a gift of fate, asked him for a tidy sum to start his own business. The father-in-law did not refuse, and Sam got money to buy the franchise of the Ben Franklin retail chain. A small shop was opened in downtown Newport, which very quickly became popular among locals. Sam Walton took his first business more than seriously. He personally greeted every visitor to the store at the entrance and showed maximum attention to everyone. Sam often told shoppers that the store did not belong to him personally, but to his entire family. And he often told visitors about his son Robson, whom he loved very much.

Very quickly, the store Walton managed was the most successful in the entire Ben Franklin chain. When it came time to renew the franchise contract, the network owner refused to do so. It is understandable: the owner wanted to manage the store with such excellent sales figures.

Sam Walton with his wife and children move to the city of Bentonville. At that time, Sam did not doubt for a second that trade was his vocation, and that was what he would do all his life. He opens the Five & Ten Cents store, the name of which is clear at what price goods are sold there. Now in this store is the Wal-Mart Museum, where everyone can look at the oldest products that have ever been sold online. Among them there is an exhibit with a rather interesting history. This is the most common thermometer that the buyer returned to the store with the words "this watch shows the wrong time."
Sam continued to open stores throughout Arkansas, gaining experience and shaping his own principles for trading. When he decided to open his first supermarket, he was already a professional in his field.

The goal of Sam Walton was to create such stores that harmoniously combine the pleasant atmosphere of small family shops and the scale of large supermarkets. In search of new ideas, Walton visited almost all the shops that came across to him, and studied how they are arranged.

Beginning of Wal-Mart History

Wal-Mart's story would not have begun if Walton had not had the idea of \u200b\u200bopening a large supermarket in a small town on the outskirts. The fact is that large shops were available only in large cities. But in them, the cost of land and labor was very high for Walton. And small cities were not even considered large market players as a platform for business. Contrary to the doubts of his friends, Walton decided to try.

So almost on the outskirts of Rogers a supermarket called “Waltons Five And Dime” was opened. Locals liked this supermarket because it was as big as the supermarkets of megalopolises, but the prices were much lower and there was a warm, almost family atmosphere. This principle is still present on the Wal-Mart network: all stores open on the outskirts of cities, and not in their centers.

The first open stores of the Waltons Five And Dime chain provided an opportunity to purchase goods not just at low prices, but at surprisingly low prices. At first, visitors were wary of this, but then they realized that the quality of the goods was in no way inferior to similar goods in other stores.

Why was the network renamed from “Waltons Five And Dime” to Wal-Mart? The fact is that the name “Waltons Five And Dime” was too long. At first, Walton wanted to rename his network simply as “Waltons”, but it turned out that the cost of each letter for the construction of a sign is quite high. Sam decided to save money and simply call the stores “Wal.” The prefix Mart (which means "market") appeared a little later. During the first five years after the opening of the first store of the chain, another 24 of them were opened.

Sam Walton always talked with his subordinates and asked them for advice on improving store performance. For example, the idea of \u200b\u200ballowing customers to bring shopping carts directly to the car was given to Walton by a loader of one of the stores, the idea of \u200b\u200bfree parking for visitors was one of the clerks. Walton did not hesitate to ride a regular pickup truck and dress in cheap clothes. And once he even danced the dance of the Hawaiian peoples, putting on a Hawaiian skirt of leaves, right in the middle of a busy street, as he had lost a bet to his friend.

Charges from other entrepreneurs

Due to the success of Wal-Mart, many small shops began to die out. It was just that customers liked to buy more in a large supermarket with low prices, while receiving a warm welcome and an individual approach from the staff. Small shops began to go bankrupt, and their owners blamed Sam Walton, who was constantly multiplying his supermarkets throughout America. Accusations of violating American traditions, which involved the placement of all major establishments and shops in city centers, also rained down.

Walton considered such accusations unfair, and in the early 1990s he wrote a book in which he told the whole history of Wal-Mart from the very beginning. So people found out that Sam didn’t even want to ruin someone’s thoughts, he just did what he liked. He built shops on the outskirts not because he wanted to turn American traditions, but because it was cheaper to rent land.

In the same book, Walton spoke about his charity work, which he previously preferred to remain silent. Walton was born and raised in a small provincial town and knew perfectly well what the inhabitants of such cities suffer from. Therefore, starting to do business, he transferred amounts of money to various charitable foundations for the formation of scholarships for students, from time to time he held sales of goods for the poorest people, donated money to zoos, clinics, libraries, theaters.

After the release of this autobiographical book, the public finally recognized that Walton did a lot for the country and its people. In 1992, the American president awarded Sam Walton the Freedom Medal. In the same year, Sam Walton died, and the business went to his wife and children.

Descendants of Walton

Today, many critics say that Walton’s children did nothing good for the company, but only reap the benefits of their father’s labor and perseverance. Others say that the descendants of Walton are still guided by the principles that their father adhered to in doing business, and therefore the Wal-Mart network will never go broke. One way or another, the children of Sam Walton - Jim, Alice, John, Robson, and wife Helen are among the richest people in the world, and if you add their fortunes together, then the richest family in the world.

Sam Walton's best quotes

Always be the first to speak with the person. If I always waited for someone to contact me or talk to me, I would never have formed a network of my contacts, which are so needed in business.
Your only boss is your customer. This person is able to ruin an entire company, or demote its director to a guard, simply by starting to regularly buy goods in another store.
In any store, sellers will treat buyers in the same way that store management treats sellers.
When asked about savings, I always say the same phrase: “In my entire life I have acquired eighteen aircraft. But I didn’t buy any of them new. ”
Do not go with the flow. Swim above him.

Operating profit ▼ $ 22.764 billion (2017) Net profit ▼ $ 13.643 billion (2017) Assets ▼ $ 198.825 billion (2017) Capitalization $ 239 billion (05/20/2017) Number of employees 2.3 million (2016) Affiliated companies Sam "s Club, Massmart [d], Walmart canada [d], Walmart chile [d], Walmart de mexico y centroamérica [d], Seiyu group [d], Asda, Kosmix [d], Walmart [d], Más club [d], Líderr [d], Hypermart USA [d], Amigo Supermarkets [d], Walmart neighborhood market [d], Asda mobile [d], Marketside [d] and Vudu [d] Auditor Ernst & Young LLP Website www.walmart.com Wal-Mart Stores on Wikimedia Commons

History

Founded July 2, 1962 in the city of Rogers (Arkansas) by Sam Moore Walton. He acquired his first store in 1945 as a franchise from the Ben Franklin chain; by the end of the 1950s, he and his brother James Lawrence Walton owned 9 stores in the chain. He proposed to the network owners the idea of \u200b\u200bopening large shopping centers in small cities with prices close to wholesale. Having been refused, in 1962 he founded his network, calling it Wal-Mart Discount City. By the end of the 1960s, 18 Wal-Mart shopping centers were opened; in October 1969, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. It was registered, in 1970 it became public, in 1972 it was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. In the early 1970s, the company began to build its own warehouses, which, combined with low advertising costs, made it possible to keep prices lower than those of competitors. In 1977, 16 stores of the Mohr-Value chain were purchased, and the next year, the scope was expanded with the purchase of the Hutchenson Shoe Company network of shoe stores and the establishment of pharmaceutical, service stations and jewelry divisions. By 1979, the company had 276 shopping centers in 11 states, with a turnover of $ 1.25 billion.

In 1983, the first three wholesale Sam's Club shopping centers were opened, by 1991 their number had reached 148. In 1987, the company opened the first Hypermart USA format shopping center, which, in addition to the supermarket, also included restaurants, banks, playgrounds, etc. However, this format proved to be ineffective and in the 1990s the company switched to the smaller Wal-Mart Supercenters format (with an area of \u200b\u200babout 10 thousand m²). By 1988, when David Glass replaced the founder as president, the company was represented in 24 states, it had 1,182 shopping centers and 90 wholesale clubs. At the same time, the company was criticized for tough relationships with suppliers, crowding out smaller competitors, and a high share of imported goods (25-30%). In 1990, Wal-Mart became the largest retailer in the United States and continued to expand rapidly. In 1990, Western Merchandise, Inc., a Texas-based company that bought books, music and video products, and McLane Company, Inc., were bought. In 1991, The Wholesale Club, Inc., a network of wholesale clubs merged with Sam’s Club, was merged. Also in 1991, a joint venture was established with Mexico's largest retail chain, Cifra, S.A. de C.V. With the death of Sam Walton, his eldest son, Robson Walton, took over as chairman of the board. In a 1993 NBC report, Wal-Mart was accused of using child labor in Bangladesh to produce goods labeled as made in the United States. By the mid-1990s, the company had reached the limits of growth in the domestic market and began expanding abroad. In 1994, 122 Woolco stores were purchased from Woolworth Corporation in Canada for $ 335 million. In the following years, joint ventures were created in Argentina, Brazil, and China; in 1997, a controlling stake in Mexican partner Cifra was bought for $ 1.2 billion. The development of Europe began with Germany, where in December 1997 the Wertkauf chain, consisting of 21 hypermarkets, was bought for $ 880 million. A year later, another chain, Interspar, consisting of 74 hypermarkets, was purchased from SPAR Handels AG. In 1999, ASDA Group plc was bought in the United Kingdom for $ 10.8 billion, which managed 229 shopping centers and had a turnover of $ 13.2 billion. In the late 1990s, the presence in Asia also expanded: the number of shopping centers in China was increased and not particularly successful entry into the markets of Korea and Indonesia was carried out. By 1998, foreign operations accounted for 6.4% of the turnover ($ 7.5 billion), at which time (since 1997) Wal-Mart Stores was among the 30 companies that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average. In the US market, the company began to develop a minimarket format (English Neighborhood Market), the sales area of \u200b\u200bwhich does not exceed 4000 m².

Typical Wal-Mart Outback

In 2000, Lee Scott was appointed president of the company, under whose leadership Wal-Mart Stores continued to grow. In 2002, a 35% stake in the Japanese company Seiyu, Ltd. was purchased. In 2003, the company's turnover reached $ 244.52 billion and Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. became the largest company in the world, as well as the largest non-governmental employer. Wal-Mart accounted for 10% of U.S. imports from China, and its low-price orientation played a significant role in low US inflation. However, the status of the largest company attracted a fair amount of criticism as to how such success was achieved. In particular, questions arose regarding relations with employees: staff turnover among hourly employees was 44% a year, average salaries of ordinary employees were below the federal subsistence level, employees were forced to work overtime, there was discrimination based on gender, and therefore the company was filed against a lot of both collective and individual lawsuits. Wal-Mart has also been accused of violating US anti-corruption laws by expanding its presence in Mexico, Brazil, and Asia. By 2005, Wal-Mart chain store imports from China reached 1% of the country's GDP.

In 2006, South Korean and German Wal-Mart projects were closed. There were 11 large retail stores in the South Korean market. For several years, Wal-Mart tried to overcome the breakeven threshold in the market, but the network administration was forced to admit defeat and sell outlets to a competitor. In Germany, the annual losses of Interspar and Wertkauf networks amounted to $ 100 million. On July 27, 2006, there was an official announcement on the sale of Wal-Mart 85 stores with more than 11 thousand employees, the total turnover was 2 billion euros per year. The buyer was the company Metro Group.

In 2011, 51% of the shares of the South African company Massmart Holdings Ltd, which owned a supermarket chain in South Africa, as well as in several other African countries, were bought for $ 4 billion.

In 2016, California was fined $ 1 million for selling plastic bags as biodegradable, although tests have shown that they are not 100% degradable in soil.

On August 8, 2016, Walmart announced the purchase for $ 3 billion of one of the fastest growing online marketplace companies Jet.com, and under the terms of the transaction, founder and CEO Mark Lor (eng.)russian and Jet.com’s top management will join the Walmart team and lead the retailer’s online sales department for several years.

May 9, 2018 Walmart announced the purchase of 77% in the Indian market leader in e-commerce Flipkart for $ 16 billion. This was the largest acquisition in Walmart history and the largest transaction in the history of e-commerce. It is also worth noting that investors reacted negatively to Walmart's message about a deal with Flipkart, skeptical about the company's prospects in the Indian market. Walmart shares fell 3.1% after the deal.

Owners and management

In total, at the end of March 2017, the company had 236 thousand shareholders. The largest shareholders are the heirs of the company's founder Sam Walton through Walton Enterprises LLC (43%) and Walton Family Holdings Trust (5.3%).

Greg Penner Greg penner), genus. December 18, 1969 in Atherton (California) - Chairman of the Board since 2015, member of the Board of Directors since 2008. Robson Walton's son-in-law S. Robson Walton), after the resignation of which he took this post. Education: Georgetown University and Stanford Graduate School of Business.
Douglas Macmillon Doug mcmillon), genus. October 17, 1966 in Memphis (Tennessee) - President and CEO from 2014, from 2009 to 2014 he was vice president and headed the international division of the company, from 2005 to 2009 he headed the division of Sam’s Club; In the company since 1984. He graduated from the University of Arkansas and the University of Tulsa.

Activities

Walmart is a leader in implementing technologies related to the use of RFID tags in trading.

Wal-mart in the USA

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. consists of three main divisions:

USA ( Walmart U.S.) - retail and online trading, as well as related financial services, such as money transfers, cashing checks, prepaid cards; includes 3522 supermarkets, 415 discount centers and 735 minimarkets; most widely represented in the states of Texas (501), Florida (326), California (281), North Carolina (194), Georgia (192), Illinois (162), Ohio (145), Tennessee (139), Pennsylvania (138) , Virginia (136), Missouri (136), Oklahoma (123), Louisiana (122), Indiana (115), South Carolina (108), New York (100); turnover at the end of the fiscal year ended January 31, 2017 amounted to $ 308 billion, assets amounted to $ 104 billion.

International presence of Wal-Mart

In the Forbes Global 2000 list of the largest public companies in the world in 2017, the company took 17th place, including 1st in terms of turnover, 19th in net profit, 154th in assets and 22nd in market capitalization; also took 9th place among the largest US companies and 22nd place in the list of the most expensive brands in the world.

Performance indicators

Financial performance in billions of US dollars

Year	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
Turnover	112,0	129,2	153,3	178,0	201,2	226,5	252,8	281,5	308,9	345,0	374,5	404,3	408,1	421,8	447,0	468,7	476,3	485,7	482,1	485,9
Net profit	3,504	4,397	5,324	6,235	6,592	7,955	9,054	10,27	11,23	11,28	12,73	13,24	14,45	15,36	15,77	16,96	15,92	16,18	14,69	13,64
Assets	44,22	47,07	67,29	74,32	79,30	90,23	102,5	117,1	136,2	151,6	163,5	163,1	170,4	180,8	193,4	202,9	204,5	203,5	199,6	198,8
Equity	18,52	21,14	25,88	31,41	35,19	39,46	43,62	49,40	53,17	61,57	64,51	64,97	70,47	68,54	71,32	76,34	76,26	81,39	80,55	77,80
Outlets, thousands	3,373	3,493	3,884	4,073	4,294	4,563	4,799	5,182	6,037	6,779	7,262	7,909	8,459	8,970	10,13	10,77	10,94	11,45	11,53	11,69

Inside the Wal-Mart Store

Wal-Mart Stores in Russia

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

After opening an office in Russia, Wal-Mart Stores tried to create a joint venture with X5 Retail Group on the basis of the Karusel hypermarket chain, but the transaction was not completed. Then, in 2008, the American retailer participated in the tender for the acquisition of 89% of the St. Petersburg hypermarket chain "Lenta", but the transaction also did not take place.

In 2010, Wal-Mart Stores was negotiating the purchase of the Kopeyka network from companies owned by Nikolai Tsvetkov, the head of FC Uralsib. However, after the acquisition of Kopeika by the Russian retailer X5 Retail Group for 51.5 billion rubles in early December 2010, Wal-Mart decided to close the Russian representative office. According to Dag Macmillon, president of Wal-Mart Stores international division, the company remains interested in the Russian food market, but does not see partners for cooperation in the near future.

In September 2011, the appointment of the Russian manager Lev Khasis, the former head of X5 Retail Group, as the senior vice president of Wal-Mart Stores, was announced. The main areas of his work should be the integration of acquired networks, global synergy and innovation.

Criticism

A number of critics [ who?] The network claims that Walmart is helping drive small merchants out of the market, including small family stores. Also, a number of individuals and organizations cite evidence that Walmart puts pressure on suppliers by squeezing lower purchase prices out of them, chain stores negatively affect the environment, and staff rights are often violated.

Wal-Mart gained fame for its stiff opposition to union activity in its stores. [ ]

In 2001, Barbara Ehrenreich's book, Counting the Pennies: How to (Not) Make Ends Meet in America, was published. This book described Wal-Mart from the inside and contained numerous descriptions of violations of workers' rights when working for the company.

Notes

Annual Report for the Fiscal Year Ended January 31, 2017 on SEC Filing Form 10-K. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc .. Retrieved May 20, 2017.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc - Quote. Reuters Retrieved May 20, 2017.

I bring to your attention a brief description of Volmart - a store with a large assortment of goods and low prices. Volmart also sells goods online.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. better known to customers as Walmart (Wolmart) - American multinational retail corporation, which is a chain of large discount stores and warehouse stores.

According to Fortune Global 500 (2013), the company is the second largest corporation in the world; also the largest employer - with more than 2 million employees; the largest seller in the world. The company remains a family-owned business. The company is controlled by the Walton family, which owns more than 50% of Walmart. This is one of the most valuable companies in the world.

The company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962. At first, its management lodged in Arkansas, but already in the late 80s it grew from a regional to a national giant. By 1988, Walmart was the most profitable retailer in the United States and by 1989 the most profitable. Being until the mid-80s geographically limited by the south and part of the west of the country, by the beginning of the 90s the company was present in the country everywhere - from one coast to another.

Today Walmart has 8,500 stores in 15 countries. Shops are open under 55 different names. The company operates stores under the name Walmart in the United States (including 50 states and Puerto Rico). In other countries, for example, Walmart de Mexico y Centraamerica (Mexico), Asda (England), Seiyu (Japan) ... Walmart is successful in most countries (for example, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, England, China, South America ) and unsuccessful in some - in Germany and South Korea. In 2009, Walmart accounted for 51% of all 258 billion US profits from grocery stores.

The success of this company was laid at the very beginning of its creation by a successful choice of development strategy. When in 1945, businessman and former J.C. Penney employee Sem Walton bought out part of Ben Franklin Stores, he focused on selling low-priced goods. This increased the sales of goods. The buyer was pleased with the luck, the benefit of the purchase.

This idea, based on an understanding of what the customer wants and what is pleasant to feel, formed the basis for the development strategy of the Sema Walton chain of stores. And in 2005, Walmart had 312.4 billion dollars in sales, had more than 6,000 facilities worldwide, including 3,800 stores in the United States and 2,800 in other countries. He had over 1.6 million employees. In 2005, the Walmart chain of stores was so widespread in the United States that only very small and isolated towns were more than 60 miles (100km) from the nearest store.

Who is the main buyer of such a successful chain of stores?

Mostly poor people. The average Walmart buyer earns less than the US national average. In 2006, Walmart analyzed a customer base (200 million) and identified them as 6 major groups. These are groups: African-Americans; wealthy; parents who raised children and now live separately; Hispanic city \u200b\u200bdwellers; residents of the suburbs. To satisfy the purchasing needs of these population groups, the stores of the network are oriented.

In accordance with how shoppers relate to store prices, they are divided into three main groups: 1. People who earn little, but are in pursuit of fashion brands. 2. Wealthy, but trying to buy goods cheaper. 3. People who like low prices and also they cannot afford to buy anything at higher prices.

Naturally Walmart crowds out (especially in small cities) small local shops. Professor Kenneth Stone (Iowa State University) writes that small towns have lost more than half of their income over the course of 10 years when Walmart starts working nearby. True, some others believe that other factors do not affect profits.

Does such a successful corporation donate money to the social needs of the population?
Sam Walton has never been a philanthropist. He believed that as soon as he starts to earn a lot of money, people will expect that he will give out this money just like that, for nothing. However, as a successful businessman, he invested a lot of money in education, helping people to achieve life success through work. Since the death of Sema Walton in 1992, Walmart and the Wolmart Foundation have dramatically increased all casualties.

So, the Walmart chain of stores serves a poor buyer. It is known that if a buyer does not belong to the rich, then naturally, it is more difficult for him to get a good education, to join cultural values, etc. This leaves an imprint on his lifestyle, the nature of communication with other people, the sphere of interests.

When you come to Walmart, you should be prepared for this. You can’t expect that the goods you bought will be nicely packed in a firm's paper bag tied with a ribbon (as, for example, in Coldwater Creek); they will take it out and give it to you, standing face to face (as in Nordstrom), and not through the cash desk table; they will smile at you so sincerely that your mood will be good throughout the day (as in Talbots) ... In the Walmart store, everything can be a little different. And the goods you bought are simply pushed into a branded gray plastic bag, and in the fitting room they will count how many things you took for trying on, and at the exit they can (though only occasionally) ask them to show a receipt for the purchased goods ...

However, both store staff and customers are friendly and eager to respond to a request for help. Naturally, no one will try to go out of turn to the checkout, or pass between people who stand in line (there are small queues at hours when people return from work and on weekends when they buy food and other goods for a week).

If you bought a product and want to return it - there is no problem: they will be glad to receive it back in a special department and will be as welcoming as when making a purchase. Despite the fact that shoppers are mostly people who consider every penny, they do not look annoyed, gloomy or angry at all. On the contrary, in the store they have fun talking with children (there are always a lot of children), discussing purchases, creating a kind of relaxed and, at the same time, Walmart business atmosphere.

As in many other stores, Walmart has special electric trolley chairs for the disabled or just old people. When they are free, you can see how young shoppers use them in the store (either for fun, or for shopping). Probably, buyers would never have done this, for example, Wegmans.

Of course, there are times when some people feel uncomfortable that someone they know meets them at Walmart. If before a person could afford to shop in a more expensive store, but suddenly his financial situation has changed and he visits Walmart - this could be a test for him.

But if you need some kind of trinket or something rarely used and special that you looked in all the stores and did not find - go to Walmart and there, most likely, you will find the right little thing. It can be something for sewing or knitting, for a garden, for a kitchen, for organizing a children's holiday, for apartment renovation and design ... Sometimes it seems that this store has everything. Naturally, what you are looking for at Walmart will not be of such quality (and accordingly cost) as it can be in other stores oriented to a wealthy buyer. However, you may be glad you saved money.

In Volmart, there is even a department of fabrics and accessories, not at all large, but there are (there are no such departments in other American stores at all).

You should not think that everything in this store will be cheaper. In the store, goods are most often cheaper, but not all and not always. This is especially true of food. Often a higher quality product for a lower price can be bought at a good grocery store (especially if it is focused on the sale of so-called family packages). But you can buy cheap shoes, a fashionable T-shirt, a fun summer dress for a child, cheap sweatpants and much more at Walmart.

What brands can you buy at Walmart? These are the brands Samsung, Apple, LEI, Wrangler, Hanes, Faded Glory, etc. There are a lot of children's goods in the store, including toys. The store sells products for children of the brands Disney, Hello Kitty, Fisher Price, Lego, Barbie, Sesame Street, etc.

Walmart has its own brands. This, for example, Sam's Choice (different types of food), Great Value (traditionally basic foods), Equate (some medicines, pregnancy tests, cosmetics, etc.), Mainstays (furniture, home decor elements), OI ' Roy (food for dogs), Dr.Thunder (drinks), Special Kitty (food for cats), Parent's Choice (baby food, diapers, etc.), White Stay (women's clothing, shoes, jewelry), George (formal clothes for men, women, children), etc.

There are a lot of customers at Walmart every day. You can always save money here.

Buy online at: Walmart.com

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