Letter From The Editor

Discount Store News, Oct, 1999

A tribute to a culture

Throughout the years, Wal-Mart, along with Kmart, Target and many other retailers, have grown up together with Discount Store News in the largest segment of the retailing industry.

DSN has provided Wal-Mart with news and information about the industry, and DSN has provided the industry with news and information about Wal-Mart.

In fact, DSN alone has written countless articles about the Bentonville company, from the early days of Sam Walton's Discount City stores in Arkansas to the recent acquisition of Asda that mark the retailer's entry into the United Kingdom.

DSN is the only publication of its kind to have published so detailed a chronology and analysis not only of Wal-Mart's growth and accomplishments, but the industry's as well.

In the spirit of our commitment to the industry as one of its most credible observers, DSN earlier this year announced a special award recognizing Wal-Mart as "Retailer of the Century." This "extra" issue of DSN has been created to commemorate that once-in-a-lifetime achievement by tracing the past, outlining the present and projecting the future of the world's largest retailer.

This 200-page special issue reflects the fundamental principals that redefined retailing around the globe and created the ultimate retail benchmark for the 21st century.

Wal-Mart's history not only represents an extraordinary story in the retail industry, but is one of the most incredible stories in the history of American business.

Whether an associate or supplier, a competitor or consultant, everyone has not only their opinion about Wal-Mart, but also an anecdote about the retailer. There are more folksy-type stories about people's experiences with Wal-Mart than with most other companies, regardless of the industry. It's not surprising considering that Mr. Sam was one of the best storytellers in corporate America.

"If you want to build any kind of lasting relationship with your people," Sam said, "you must become a master at communicating with them."

And Mr. Sam did just that. He became a mentor to hundreds of thousands of associates as well as other retailers and businessmen who aspired to emulate his style and success, and his executive team have personified his beliefs.

"The key to Wal-Mart's success," said Walton in 1985, "must be that we all truly embrace the philosophy of being servant leaders, both to our customers and each other."

And as much as any competitor may dismiss Wal-Mart's style or strategy, conversely Wal-Mart associates embrace their competitors' ideas and innovations.

Wal-Mart's associates are characteristically proud and humble about their accomplishments and size, but prefer not to be in the spotlight--although it will continue to shine brighter and brighter on Bentonville as the world gets ready for the new millennium.

But perhaps one of the greatest accomplishments that Wal-Mart deserves credit for was simply proving its critics wrong about several strategic initiatives that it was claimed could not be attained. Consider the following examples:

So many observers believed that Wal-Mart could not compete in the warehouse club industry in the early '80s when the Sam's format was launched in the shadow of Sol Prices' Price Club.

So many observers pummeled Wal-Mart about its foray in 1988 into the European-style one-stop shopping format--Hypermarket USA--which was the very experiment that preceded its now vital supercenter strategy.

So many observers scoffed at the notion of a "vendor store" as they paraded through a test unit in Wisconsin in 1990, which became the laboratory for supplier input and category dominance.

So many observers said the culture would not be sustained after Wal-Mart's servant leader passed away in April 1992.

So many observers said that no other nation's workers would embrace the spirit of teamwork and empowerment, let alone the infamous cheer that forces people to bend, twist and understand what a "squiggly" is.

Wal-Mart has proven its strongest critics wrong time and again--and may have even surprised itself.

As much as Wal-Mart has grown, the key point to remember is that the fundamental cornerstones of its operating philosophy haven't changed.

While size matters to some, it's success that matters first to Wal-Mart. Rob Walton once said that size was just a matter of more numbers on paper and that the real challenge was not to worry about how big Wal-Mart is or will become, but simply to keep doing the right things and adhering to his father's principles.

This commemorative issue recognizing Wal-Mart as "Retailer of the Century" captures the soul of Wal-Mart, the essence of retailing and the spirit of American business.

Enjoy the issue.