"The Secret Of Successful Retailing Is To Give Your Customer What They Want."

Watch a short video produced for the 1999 Arkansas Business Hall of Fame.

When Sam M. Walton, at the age of 44, opened his first Wal-Mart store in Rogers, Arkansas, in 1962, no one imagined he was introducing a retailing formula that within a generation would impact the lives of millions of people.

Under the drive, vision and inspiration of Walton, Wal-Mart's phenomenal growth and pursuit of excellence is unparalleled. Today, Sam's gamble is a global company with more than 1.8 million associates worldwide and more than 6,100 stores and wholesale clubs across 10 countries. Such achievement mirrors Walton's drive to succeed.

Samuel Moore Walton was born March 29, 1918, in Kingfisher, Oklahoma. He graduated from the University of Missouri at Columbia in 1940 with a B.A. in economics earning his expenses in high school and college by delivering newspapers.

He served as a Captain in the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps from 1942 to 1945. He gained early retail experience at J .C. Penney Co., Inc., in Iowa and operated his own variety store in Newport, Arkansas. During this time, Sam developed a deep understanding of the customer and an ability to motivate others. With the influence and encouragement of his wife, Helen, Sam opened the land-mark Five & Dime in Bentonville, Arkansas in 1951. Never content, Walton began to look beyond the small variety store format; and, in 1962, he opened his first Wal-Mart in nearby Rogers. The company's early popularity exceeded expectations, resulting in a rapid state-by-state store expansion financed largely through proceeds of a public stock offering in 1971. Shareholders (which included most "associates") reaped the benefits of Wal-Mart's success. The stock split 10 times over the next 22 years, hitting an all-time high in December 1998 after increasing approximately 350 percent over the previous two years.

Sam Walton was frequently recognized for his business success and his commitment to the community. He was named "America's Most Successful Merchant" in the September 1991 cover story of Fortune magazine. A&E Biography produced Sam's life story in 1997 resulting in one of the most watched programs of the series.

Shortly before his death on April 5, 1992, Sam Walton received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George Bush, the highest honor the country bestows on its private citizens. Walton along with Helen and the entire family received the prestigious 1997 National Patriots Award for "exemplifying the ideals that make this country strong." In presenting the award, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society citation read: "From building America's economic strength, to defending our country's freedoms, to generously helping others in need, the Walton family has served the nation and its citizens with humility and honor." In 1998, Time Magazine and CBS News recognized Sam Walton as one of the 20 most influential business geniuses of the 20th century.

• Wal-Mart Inc.

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