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WAL-MART: History, Philosophy, Business Strategy, Community Partnership and Present Structure and Future Outlook. History Wal-Mart is the brainchild of Sam Walton, born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma in the year 1918. He was educated at the University of Missouri where he obtained a bachelor degree in economics in 1940. Apart from being a good student through share dedication and hard work, Sam Walton was actively involved in extra curricular and community based activities. At different times he was the student president, president of Sunday school class, member of Rotary club, president of the local Chamber of Commerce, etc. Sam Walton’s first stint at retail business was at JC Penney Stores where he landed a job as manager trainee immediately after his graduation. He held the job until 1942, when he enlisted in the USA Army for World War II. He put his entrepreneurial skills to test in 1945, after his discharge from the military. He obtained the franchise of Butler Brothers to run a retail store at Newport. His store was a huge success with outstanding performance. His next store still under the franchise of the Butler Brothers was set up in Bentonville in Arkansas. This was the beginning of a bigger dream that would eventually see the birth of the world’s largest retail chain in 1962. By that year Sam and his brother Bud already had sixteen retail stores called Walton center, in Arkansas, Missouri and Kansas. These became Wal-Mart stores, as we know them today. The first Wal-Mart store was set up in Rogers, Arkansas. The chain experienced rapid growth and high profitability. By 1980 it had over 300 stores. Today, both local and international, it has about 4,600 stores with annual sales in the region of $237 billion. Philosophy Sam Walton emphasized the pre-eminent position of customers in his business. His teaching is that every customer must receive courteous treatment in Wal-Mart stores. They are to be given “high value, low price and warm welcome”. This is embodied among other things in the “10 foot attitude” which simply means that employees of the organization must endeavor to greet customers first, before the customer has the opportunity to greet them. Ancillary to this is Wal-Mart’s practice of putting staff at the entrance doors of their stores to pleasantly welcome customers into the stores with friendly smiles. There is no doubt that this has positive psychological impact on the customers who naturally would want to do business in a friendly environment and interact with staff that demonstrate positive attitude. Another limb of Wal-Mart’s demonstrated customer commitment is seen in the emphasis on quality merchandise as well as brand name products at low prices.
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