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Wal Mart And Its Impact On America

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In 1950, Sam Walton purchased a store from Luther E. Harrison in Bentonville, Arkansas, and opened Walton 's 5 & 10. The town of 2,900 residents would become the headquarters for the world 's largest retailer. Sam Walton made a decision to sell high volumes of the products he would carry, and keep the sale prices lower than his competitors to reduce his profit margin. He was inspired by the success of other discount department stores and hired an assistant Bob Bogle, who came up with the name Wal-Mart (Dutton, 1990). By 1967, the company had grew to a total of 24 stores across Arkansas. Shortly after, Walton moved the stores to different states in Missouri, and Oklahoma. Once the 70s hit, Wal-Mart boomed into 5 more states and had over 10,000 employees. This was also when Wal-Mart started to branch into different niche segments of the market. Some examples of these are the auto care center, pharmacy, and jewelry selections. By 1982, Walmart had expanded into Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Nebraska. This was also when Sam Walton implemented the “people greeters” in all of their stores, which was a huge hit in the public 's eye. Because of their extreme expansion and all inclusiveness about their stores, Wal-Mart in 1988, became the most profitable retailer in the United States. Although it did not surpass Kmart, and Sears in terms of items purchased until late 1990. By 1991, Wal-Mart had expanded to all 50 states and would go international with its first store outside

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