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About Sam Walton
(Samuel Moore Walton), 1918-92, American retailing executive, b. Kingfisher,
Okla. After 17 years of operating franchise retail stores, he opened the first
Wal-Mart Discount City in Rogers, Ark., in 1962. Walton developed Wal-Mart into
a chain of massive, centrally controlled stores that were typically sited in
small towns and rural areas. The stores featured heavy discounting, smaller
profit margins than usual coupled with higher-volume sales, and a
customer-oriented staff. Wal-Mart flourished, went public in 1970, and by 1991
had become a multibillion-dollar business and America's largest retailer.
Walton, who stepped aside as chief executive of the company in 1988 but remained
active in its management, was by 1985 the wealthiest person in the United
States. |