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| '''Wal-mart Stores, Inc.''' is the world's largest retailer. In the fiscal year ending ], ] Wal-mart had $191 billion dollars in sales. It |
'''Wal-mart Stores, Inc.''' is the world's largest retailer. In the fiscal year ending ], ] Wal-mart had $191 billion dollars in sales. It employs over 1 million people worldwide and operates 4,500 retail units in 10 countries. Wal-mart operates in the ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and the ]. ], the founder of Wal-mart, opened the first Wal-mart store in Rogers, ] in ]. | ||
| Wal-mart stores are large in area, usually constructed as part of shopping |
Wal-mart stores are large in area, usually constructed as part of a shopping mall in a low-density suburban centre. The stores contain a broad range of products, from clothes through consumer electronics, outdoor equipment, toys, hardware, and books, as well as many other lines. Wal-mart is now the #2 grocery chain in the nation, behind ]. The products it sells are usually basic, mass-market equipment rather than premium products stocked at specialist stores. Wal-mart and stores like it are often referred to as "big box" stores because shoppers usually buy either large items or small items in volume. | ||
| The key to Wal-mart's success is the economies of scale it brings to manufacturing and logistics, buying massive quantities of items from its suppliers and with a very efficient stock control system to make logistics costs lower than its competitors, which includes the ]. | The key to Wal-mart's success is the economies of scale it brings to manufacturing and logistics, buying massive quantities of items from its suppliers and with a very efficient stock control system to make logistics costs lower than its competitors, which includes the ]. | ||
Revision as of 09:59, 21 July 2002
Wal-mart Stores, Inc. is the world's largest retailer. In the fiscal year ending January 31, 2001 Wal-mart had $191 billion dollars in sales. It employs over 1 million people worldwide and operates 4,500 retail units in 10 countries. Wal-mart operates in the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, China, Korea, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-mart, opened the first Wal-mart store in Rogers, Arkansas in 1962.
Wal-mart stores are large in area, usually constructed as part of a shopping mall in a low-density suburban centre. The stores contain a broad range of products, from clothes through consumer electronics, outdoor equipment, toys, hardware, and books, as well as many other lines. Wal-mart is now the #2 grocery chain in the nation, behind Kroger's. The products it sells are usually basic, mass-market equipment rather than premium products stocked at specialist stores. Wal-mart and stores like it are often referred to as "big box" stores because shoppers usually buy either large items or small items in volume.
The key to Wal-mart's success is the economies of scale it brings to manufacturing and logistics, buying massive quantities of items from its suppliers and with a very efficient stock control system to make logistics costs lower than its competitors, which includes the Kmart Corporation.
The legal department of Wal-Mart has a reputation among personal injury lawyers for extremely aggressive legal tactics, and the corporation has been sanctioned by several courts for failing to respond properly to plantiff discovery motions.