From our humble beginnings as a small discount retailer in Rogers, Ark., Walmart has opened thousands of stores in the U.S. and expanded internationally. Through innovation, we’re creating a seamless experience to let customers shop anytime and anywhere online and in stores. We are creating opportunities and bringing value to customers and communities around the globe. Walmart operates approximately 10,500 stores and clubs in 19 countries and eCommerce websites. We employ 2.1 million associates around the world — nearly 1.6 million in the U.S. alone.
Walmart U.S.
Every Day Low Prices on a Broad Assortment – Anytime, Anywhere
Every Day Low Price (EDLP) is the cornerstone of our strategy, and our price focus has never been stronger. Today’s customer seeks the convenience of one-stop shopping that we offer. From grocery and entertainment to sporting goods and crafts, we provide the deep assortment that our customers appreciate — whether they’re shopping online at Walmart.com, through one of our mobile apps or shopping in a store. We currently operate three primary store formats in the U.S., each custom tailored to its neighborhood.
Working at Walmart
A job at Walmart means an opportunity to build a career. More than 75% of our Walmart U.S. store operations management team members started as hourly employees, and in FY2023, we promoted more than 180,000 U.S. associates to jobs of greater responsibility and higher pay. The average hourly wage for full- and part-time U.S. hourly associates is more than $17.50 per hour. Learn more about the opportunities and benefits we offer.
Stores Tailored to Our Customers
Walmart has stores in 50 states and Puerto Rico offering low prices on the broadest assortment of products through a variety of formats including the Supercenter, Discount Store and Neighborhood Market. Learn more about our locations:
Store front
Walmart Supercenter
Walmart began building Supercenters in 1988 and are around 182,000 square feet employing about 300 associates. Walmart Supercenters offer a one-stop shopping experience by combining a grocery store with fresh produce, bakery, deli and dairy products with electronics, apparel, toys and home furnishings. Most Supercenters are open 24 hours, and may also include specialty shops such as banks, hair and nail salons, restaurants, or vision centers.
Walmart store exterior
Walmart Discount Store
Since Sam Walton opened his first discount store in Rogers, Ark., in 1962, we’ve built hundreds across the U.S. Smaller than a Supercenter, discount stores employ about 200 associates and offer electronics, apparel, toys, home furnishings, health and beauty aids, hardware and more in about 106,000 square feet of open, brightly lit space.
Store Exterior – Rogers, AR Neighborhood Market – Store 3654
Walmart Neighborhood Market
Walmart Neighborhood Markets were designed in 1998 as a smaller-footprint option for communities in need of a pharmacy, affordable groceries and merchandise. Each one is approximately 38,000 square feet and employs up to 95 associates. Walmart Neighborhood Markets offer fresh produce, meat and dairy products, bakery and deli items, household supplies, health and beauty aids and a pharmacy.
eCommerce
Creating a Seamless Shopping Experience
Walmart has been changing the face of retail since our first store opened in 1962. We’ve continued to pursue ways to bring technology into retail to offer customers a seamless shopping experience. You can find a ton of items in a Walmart store, but as customers increasingly shop across digital and physical storefronts, we’ve made it easier for you to find what you need right at your fingertips. With innovations like Curbside Pickup, Mobile Scan & Go and a whole host of apps, we’re providing customers with more ways to save time and money while reimagining how digital and physical shopping work together.
As one of the world’s largest brick-and-mortar retailers, we are also one of the fastest growing and most dynamic e-commerce organizations. With 90% of the U.S. population living within 10 miles of our stores, we’re primed to combine our physical locations with our e-commerce business to offer a level of convenience never before seen. We’re creating an experience that lets customers shop anytime, anywhere — delivering exactly what they want, when they want it.
Keeping Our Customers Connected
Walmart.com offers a variety of features to serve the needs of our connected customers. It’s part of our promise of creating convenience at the lowest price, no matter how you shop. Here are just a few ways we’re helping customers save time and money:
Walmart App – From Walmart Pay to Mobile Express Returns, prescription refills and grocery orders with same-day pickup, we help you get more done with just the touch of a button.
Mobile Scan & Go – Shop and checkout with your phone in-store.
Curbside Pickup – Order online, pickup in store.
NextDay Delivery – In many markets, customers can enjoy fast, free shipping on eligible orders over $35.
Walmart+ – Membership program that brings together in-store and online benefits.
Walmart GoLocal – Walmart’s delivery as a service business that provides delivery to customers from businesses of all sizes.
Built for Better – an online shopping destination that makes it easy for customers to identify and shop for products that are built better – for them and for the planet.
Our Supply Chain
Distribution Centers
Walmart’s 210 distribution centers are hubs of activity for our business. Our distribution operation is one of the largest in the world servicing stores, clubs and direct delivery to customers. Walmart’s transportation has a fleet of 9,000 tractors, 80,000 trailers and more than 11,000 drivers.
The distribution center network ships general merchandise and dry groceries along with other specialty categories to our consumers daily.
There are six disaster distribution centers, strategically located across the country and stocked to provide rapid response to struggling communities in the event of a natural disaster.
Each distribution center is more than 1 million square feet in size and employs 600+ personnel unloading and shipping over 200 trailers daily.
Every distribution center supports 90 to 100 stores in a 150+ mile radius.
We are continuing to create solutions that gets products on shelves even faster, but also makes warehouse work easier on our associates. Since 2017, we’ve worked with Symbotic to optimize our systems and transform our supply chain. While this technology works to sort, store, retrieve and pack freight onto pallets, it also provides an opportunity to train our associates on how to use this new equipment, developing new skills and preparing them for jobs in the future. We’ve also rolled-out a high-tech consolidation center in Colton, California, that will enable three times more volume to flow through the center. We’re continuing to use technology to transform the way we work and lead our business into the future.
Our Fulfillment Network
For our customers, it’s as easy as a tap on their screen. But what goes on behind the scenes? The short answer: a ton of people power, highly-efficient fulfillment campuses dedicated to e-commerce, a world-class transportation fleet and a touch of magic. With cutting-edge systems and unrivaled scale, we’re able to serve customers quickly and offer more choices for how they’d like to receive their orders — shipped to their homes or picked up at their local stores for free.
Our newest e-commerce fulfillment centers are capable of shipping and handling millions of items
Our fulfillment centers are strategically located across the U.S. to give us very quick and highly efficient access to U.S. customers using ground shipping.
Each fulfillment center is unique and designed with special characteristics based on the area where it’s located. For example, our fulfillment center in Davenport, Florida, has 62 dock doors that can withstand wind speeds of 120 mph due to hurricane risk.
Our Fleet
Walmart is able to move goods to and from distribution centers because we maintain a private fleet of trucks and a skilled staff of truck drivers. We think our team of drivers is the best in the world. They’re part of one of the largest and safest fleets, and every year they drive 1.1 billion miles to make millions of deliveries to our stores and clubs. Each driver averages around 100,000 miles annually-that’s like driving around the world 4 times!
Together with our truck drivers, we’re constantly working to ensure that we’re moving merchandise in responsible, sustainable ways. Drivers follow the most efficient routes to their destinations and work to minimize the number of “empty miles” they drive. This way, we use less fuel, we drive fewer miles and we maximize the merchandise we deliver while minimizing our environmental impact.
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Walmart International
Walmart helps people save money and live better. Walmart International delivers on this promise by bringing value and convenience to millions of customers in 19 countries outside the U.S.
Our unique global perspective makes it possible to see connections that others cannot and to bring innovations to market that make life easier for customers. In addition we’re building strategic partnerships through equity investments to support our core businesses.
Our strategy is to build strong local businesses that are powered by Walmart—while at the same time generating growth for the company and our partners, and making a positive impact on our stakeholders.
Walmart International has more than 5,100 retail units and approximately 550,000 associates around the world. Additionally, Walmart Global Sourcing works with manufacturers to sell their products including apparel, homeware, jewelry, hardlines and more throughout the world. Upholding Walmart’s reputation as the world’s most trusted retailer, Global Sourcing regularly audits suppliers’ practices and works with them through the Walmart Responsible Sourcing Program to help them meet Walmart’s high standards.
Read more about our tailored approach to business in each market or our guiding principles of how we operate around the world.
Markets where we operate:
Africa
Canada
Central America
Chile
China
India
Mexico
Markets where we hold equity investments:
Brazil – In March 2021, Carrefour Brazil announced an agreement with Advent International and Walmart to acquire Grupo BIG (formerly Walmart Brazil). The cash and stock deal, which values Grupo BIG at USD $1.2 billion, will see Walmart and Advent share a 5.6% stake in Carrefour Brazil. Walmart entered the Brazil market in 1996 and throughout its ownership opened Walmart Stores, Sam’s Clubs and acquired several brands like Hyper and Maxxi. In 2018, Advent International acquired an 80% stake in Walmart Brazil with Walmart retaining a 20% stake. Today, Grupo BIG is Brazil’s third-largest food retailer.
Japan – Walmart has been an investor in Japan’s Seiyu retail group since 2002. We increased our stake to 100% in 2008 to accelerate Seiyu’s development as a leading omnichannel retailer, reaching or exceeding goals in market share, customer satisfaction, associate engagement and financial performance before announcing a new ownership structure for the group in November 2020. Seiyu is now jointly owned by KKR (65%), Rakuten (20%) and Walmart (15%). This allows it to take advantage of the three partners’ combined retail expertise and innovation as it accelerates its digital transformation to build an even stronger local business.
United Kingdom – In October 2020, Walmart announced an agreement to sell Asda to entrepreneurs Mohsin and Zuber Issa, backed by British private equity firm TDR Capital. Under the new ownership structure, the Issa brothers and TDR Capital are acquiring a majority ownership stake in Asda, with equal shareholdings. Walmart will retain an equity investment in the business, with an ongoing commercial relationship and a seat on the board. Asda’s new British ownership will accelerate its current strategy, building on the business’ low-price heritage. Walmart acquired the Asda business in 1999.
Sam’s Club
Sam Walton opened the first Sam’s Club in 1983 to help small business owners save money on merchandise purchased in bulk. Since then, Sam’s Club has grown rapidly to serve families and entrepreneurs through nearly 600 clubs in the U.S., more than 200 international clubs, SamsClub.com and mobile applications. Today Sam’s Club is committed to becoming the membership you value the most by saving members money on the items they buy most and surprising members with the unexpected find – anywhere, anytime.
Sam’s Club employs about 100,000 associates in the U.S. The average club is 134,000 square feet and offers a highly curated assortment of quality fresh food and Member’s Mark items, in addition to market leading technologies and services like Scan & Go, Club Pickup and home delivery service in select markets. Sam’s Club also offers specialty services, including travel, auto buying, pharmacy, optical, hearing aid centers, tire and battery centers and a portfolio of business operations support services.