From grandfathers and fathers to grandchildren, the Walson family, which owns Walmart's retail empire, has consistently topped the list of the world's richest families.
How many generations can a family business last? By tracking the top 400 taxpayers from 1992 to 2000, the IRS came up with the rule that "the rich don't exceed three generations," with only 13 percent on the list for more than two years.
Gregory Clark, an economist at the University of California, believes that half of the children of upper-class families end up in lower-class society.
But it appears that the Walton family behind walmart's retail chain has "avoided the curse." From Sam Walton's generation, who borrowed $20,000 from his father-in-law in 1951 to open his first grocery store, to becoming the world's richest man in 2019, the Walton family has experienced three generations of continuous growth.
In bloomberg's just-released list of the 25 richest families in the world in 2021, Walton remains at the top of the list. In the past 12 months, they've made $23 billion, bringing their total wealth to $238 billion, nearly $100 billion more than the Martian family, the world's second-richest family ($141.9 billion).
Walmart's story begins with its founder, Sam Walton. Born in 1918 in a small town in Oklahoma. Mr. Sam has done a lot of work since he was a child, such as raising rabbits, milking cows, delivering newspapers, and working as a waiter.
Before marrying Helen Robson in 1942, Sam was an outstanding student of economics at the University of Missouri. In the 1950s, he noticed that the two major retail giants, Kmart and Sears, owned most of the retail stores in Arkansas and surrounding states, but did not appear in remote towns like rural areas. In 1962, he used his savings to borrow money from his father-in-law, hired eight workers, and in 1962 opened walmart, his first retail store in his hometown of Bentonville.
By 1991, his supermarket chain had overtaken Sears Rowbank to become the largest retailer in the United States, according to the New York Times. As of April 1, 1991, Walmart had 1,735 stores in 42 states and 2 stores in Mexico.
Walmart's success can be summed up in the following criteria: lowering prices through bulk purchases; customers are gods; opening up in small towns; authorizing business managers in a timely manner...
Sam himself is a workaholic. He gets up at 4:30 a.m. every day to go to work. Even if his family goes on vacation, he participates in the "act" of the local shop.
The rise of the Walton family has a lot to do with the values of the Sam family and their impact on future generations.
Mr. Sam and his wife, Helen, are both typically Americans, born and raised in small towns with values such as: valuing family ties; being very loyal to God; opposing materialism; valuing personal effort; doing charity... Sam and his wife have always had a good relationship, they grew up together, grew old together, and lived frugally. Even after becoming the richest man in the United States in 1985, he was used to wearing casual clothes and driving a worn-out pickup truck.
Mrs. Helen was born into a banker's family, and her father was handsome and had a high IQ. In the early days of entrepreneurship, Helen made up her mind not to participate in entrepreneurship, but to be a helper to the whole family.
Both spouses raise their children strictly. "When I was in school, my test score was no lower than A's. My child also has to get an A," Helen said. Mr Sam said: "My children have felt like slaves since childhood. Why not let them do housework and understand the value of labor. ”
Robertson, Sam's eldest son, recalls, "We were always working in the store, cleaning the floors, cleaning the house. My parents gave me less pocket money than many of my friends, and sometimes it made us feel like my family was poor. My dad also asked me to invest my money in the shop, and of course, this investment later helped me pay for the house. ”
Sam wrote a memoir before his death, with the sole purpose of "keeping it for his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, lest they develop the habit of extravagance and waste".
Sam Walson died in 1992. The two problems facing the Walton family are how to deal with the equity and who will take over. Many observers speculate that the Walton family may choose to sell 50 percent of its Walmart stock in exchange for cash.
During his lifetime, Sam expressed concern about the rich second generation of several family businesses selling shares to maintain a lavish lifestyle. He wanted his children to have a firm grip on the land. "We don't need much money, we don't need to buy our own yacht or island," he advises.
As a result, almost all of the Walton family's wealth is kept in Walmart stock. Ten years after Sam's death, Walmart's market capitalization has grown nearly eightfold. To be sure, if they sold their shares in cash, they wouldn't have been at the top of the list of the richest families in the world for so long.
David Glass, former CEO of Walmart, once commented: "This is not a concept that every family business can have, and the Waltons are very far-sighted. ”
Sam's four children, with the exception of the eldest, were not interested in retail. Before his death, he developed a policy of co-managing the business. Walmart has no absolute leadership, only collective absolute leadership.
The smooth transfer of power in the retail empire is due in part to the walton family's long-standing rapport. On the other hand, it is also because Mr. Sam is very famous in the company and family. Years after his death, the "elders" of the business world are still talking about "Sam's ideas" and "Sam's way" when discussing major issues. Walmart followed this collective leadership model and grew rapidly over the past 30 years.
In 2016, Stuart Walton (Jim Walton's son) was chosen as the next person to lead Walmart. With a strategic understanding of e-commerce, Steuart quickly grew Walmart to more than 11,000 stores in approximately 30 countries and territories around the world.
Steuart Waton also continued the family tradition and lived a simple, youthful life. The lawyer and businessman has a deep passion for rock climbing, extreme sports and philanthropy.
With the exception of Stewart Walton, other young members of the family rarely appear in the media. They chose to live a secluded, idyllic small town life like a family tradition.