Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores and grocery stores. Headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, the company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962 and incorporated on October 31, 1969. As of December 31, 2015, it has a total of 11,620 stores[1] in 28 countries, under a total of 65 banners.[7] The company operates under the Walmart name in the United States and Canada. It operates as Walmart de México y Centroamérica in Mexico, as Asda in the United Kingdom, as Seiyu in Japan, and as Best Price in India. It has wholly owned operations in Argentina, Brazil, and Canada. It also owns and operates the Sam's Club retail warehouses.[8][9]
Walmart is the world's largest company by revenue, according to the Fortune Global 500 list in 2014, as well as the biggest private employer in the world with 2.2 million employees. Walmart is a family-owned business, as the company is controlled by the Walton family. Sam Walton's heirs own over 50 percent of Walmart through their holding company, Walton Enterprises, and through their individual holdings.[10] It is also one of the world's most valuable companies by market value,[11] and is also the largest grocery retailer in the U.S. In 2015, it generated 59.8 percent of its US$288 billion sales in the U.S. from its grocery business.[12]
Walmart's reputation is for "low prices", compared with Target's for selling "cheap chic" and Costco's for offering low-price, limited-selection "retail treasure hunts", where "one's shopping cart could contain a $50,000 diamond ring resting on top of a 64-ounce vat of mayonnaise".[16]