ADVISORY/Wal-Mart to Celebrate Opening of Huntington Beach Store with Reception for City Officials, Local Charities and 238 New Employees

Business Wire, Jan 21, 2002

Business/News Editors

ADVISORY...for Tuesday (Jan. 22)

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

WHAT:   Wal-Mart will host an in-store reception Tuesday, Jan. 22,
        for Huntington Beach city officials, local charities and the
        families of 238 new associates to celebrate the opening this
        week of its new store in Huntington Beach. Nearly 1,000 people
        are expected to attend.

        A news briefing and media tour will be held prior to the
        reception.

        The new Huntington Beach store is located on the former site
        of Crest View School and is set to open Wednesday. To mark the
        grand opening, Wal-Mart is donating $66,300 to 40 local
        charities.

        The store is expected to generate $400,000 in annual sales tax
        revenues for the city. In addition, Ocean View School District
        will receive $400,000 a year by leasing the property to
        Wal-Mart. District officials have said they will use the money
        to build four new gymnasiums.

        Statewide, Wal-Mart stores collected and remitted $473.7
        million in sales tax, employed more then 46,000 people and
        spent more than $10 billion with California suppliers in the
        fiscal year ending Jan. 31, 2001.

WHEN:   3 p.m., Tuesday, January 22, 2002

WHERE:  Wal-Mart, Huntington Beach
        8230 Talbert Avenue, near Beach Boulevard

About Wal-Mart

With annual sales of $191 billion, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. operates more than 2,700 discount stores, Supercenters and Neighborhood Markets, and more than 490 SAM'S CLUBS in the United States. Internationally, the company operates more than 1,100 units. Wal-Mart employs 1.2 million associates worldwide. FORTUNE magazine has named Wal-Mart the third "most admired" company in America and one of the 100 best companies to work for in the United States, and Americans named Wal-Mart the company they think of first in supporting local causes and issues, according to Cone, Inc.