"Always save money," "Compare prices" and "Save money, live better" are frequent phrases used by Walmart in hopes of drawing in customers. They promise that they will have the lowest prices around, which they do. They promise to match a price if a customer finds it cheaper at a different store on the same good, which they also do. However, they've promised that people will live better, which I, and people like me have not. Walmart will indeed help people save money, whatever their income, but does it really help people like me live better? Sam Walton may not have intended for Walmart to become as dominant as it has become over the last sixty-five years, but that hasn't stopped Walmart from controlling much of the world's economy today and using their power to their advantage. .
Sam Walton was born on March 29, 1918, and grew up in rural Missouri. As well as learning hard work from working on a farm, he also learned about that hard work pays off from growing up during the Great Depression. Sam Walton went onto attend college at the University of Missouri Columbia where he majored in economics. He then opened small retail stores Called "Walton's Five and Dime," the first one in Bentonville, Arkansas. "Walton's Five and Dime" now serves as a visitor center where people can go in and buy Walmart souvenirs and see different pictures depicting the history of Walmart. Bentonville, Arkansas now serves as the Walmart Headquarters, which is ironic considering that it is such a large corporation and Bentonville is such a small town of no more than 34,000 people.
After seventeen years, Sam Walton decided that he wanted to branch out of franchise and opened up the first Walmart store. (Walton, Sam M.). Sam Walton was quoted as saying "Each Walmart store should reflect the values of its customers and support the vision they hold for their community" ("Sam Walton: Made in America" 34).