Sam Walton was an American businessman and entrepreneur. He is famous for establishing the retailers Walmart and Sam's Club. Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets. It eventually grew and became the world's largest corporation by revenue and the biggest private employer firm. Also, for a specific period of time, Sam was considered the richest man in America. He also received the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America. At the time of his death, he had a net worth of $ 8.6 billion.
Sam Walton- Biography
| Name | Samuel Moore Walton |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 March, 1918 |
| Birthplace | Kingfisher, Oklahoma, U.S |
| Death | 5 April, 1992 |
| Life-span | 74 years |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | University of Missouri |
| Profession | Businessman |
| Known for | Founder of Walmart and Sam's Club |
| Net worth | $ 8.6 billion ( at the time of death) |
| Father | Gibson Walton |
| Mother | Nancy Lee |
| Brother | James "Bud" Walton |
| Spouse | Helen Robson |
| Children | S. Robson Walton; John T. Walton; Jim Walton; Alice Walton |
| Grandson | Lukas Walton |
Sam Walton- Personal Life
Sam Walton- Education
Sam Walton- Professional Life
Sam Walton- Military journey
Sam Walton- Startup
Sam Walton- Walmart
Sam Walton- Sam's Club
StartupTalky
Sam Walton- Personal Life
Sam was born in Kingfisher, Oklahoma. He lived with his parents near their farm. However, the family was unable to cope up with their financial needs through farming. His father then decided to mortgage his farm and then worked for his brother's Mortgage Company, an agent of Metropolitan Life Insurance.
The family later moved to Missouri and then to Columbia, Missouri. He grew up during the Great Depression of the 1930s. He used to do the household chores like, milking the cow, bottling the surplus and delivering it to customers to meet the financial ends of the family. After completing his household errands, he used to deliver Columbia Daily Tribune newspapers on paper route and sold magazine subscriptions as well.
Sam Walton- Education
Sam became the youngest Eagle Scout while studying in eighth grade in Shelbina, Missouri. He completed further studies from David H. Hickman High School in Columbia and was titled as the "Most Versatile Boy".
He then graduated with a Bachelor of Economics from University of Missouri in 1940 ans was voted as the "permanent president" of the class.
Sam Walton- Professional Life
He did various jobs to meet the financial ends of his family during the Great Depression period. He worked at waiting tables in exchange for meals. He earned several honors and awards since his childhood. He joined the Zeta Phi part of Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He also received the QEBH, the national military honor Scabbard and Blade. Moreover, he has also served as the president of Burall Bible Class and Stephens College.
He joined J. C. Penney as a management trainee in Des Moines, lowa. This job paid him $ 75 per month. After 18 months, he resigned the job in 1942 as he joined the military force serving in World War II.
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Sam Walton- Military journey
His military journey also taught him to be a giver rather than a taker. He also realized his interest in retailing and business while serving in military. Meanwhile, he joined the military in the U. S Army Intelligence Corps, and performed the position of responsibility by supervising security at aircraft plants and prisoner of war camps. Gradually, he reached the prestigious position of captain. He further left the Army and established his retail startup.
Sam Walton- Startup
At age 26, Sam started his first variety store with a $ 20,000 loan from his father-in-law and $ 5,000 that he saved while serving in the Army. He then purchased a store which was a franchise of Butler Brothers chain. He offered prices as good or better than the nearby stores and consistently stocked a variety of goods in his store.
Post that, he opened his second store called the Eagle department store. After seeing the growth in sales, the landlord started making some contracts to which Sam wasn't comfortable. He was forced to leave the rented store and got fixtures for $ 50,000, which Walton called "a fair price".
He purchased a new location in Bentonville and it eventually grew from $ 72,000 to $ 105,000 in the first year of sales and then to $ 175,000. The new store was named "Five and Dime". Sam was encouraged to escort more locations and open more Ben Franklin franchises.
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Sam Walton- Walmart
The company was first labelled as Walmart on 2 July, 1962 in Rogers, Arkansas, then called Wal-Mart Discount City store. Sam displayed a focused effort to market American-made products and willingness to find American manufactures who could supply merchandise for the whole Walmart chain at a reasonable price to stand firmly before foreign competitors.
Sam's model for Walmart Incorporation offered two advantages, the first one included limited existing competition. The second advantage was the gigantic store that discouraged businesspersons in the nearby areas from entering the market. He emphasized logistics, locating stores of regional warehouses and distributing through its own trucking service.
Sam Walton- Sam's Club
Sam introduced Sam's club, an American chain of membership- only retail warehouse clubs, which is owned and operated by Walmart Incorporation. Sam's Club was founded in 1983 and it was named after the founder's name. As of 31 January, the company ranks second in sales volume among warehouses clubs worth $ 57.839 billion in sales. It operates 599 membership warehouse clubs in 44 states of the U. S.
