Wal-Mart to Open Its 3000th International Store

BENTONVILLE, Ark., Nov. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Next week Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. will celebrate the opening of its 3000th international store, a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Since opening its first international store in Mexico in 1991, the Wal-Mart International Division has grown to become a $77.1 billion business that, standing alone, would rank as the world's fifth largest retailer in terms of sales revenue.

"The opening of Wal-Mart's 3000th international store marks a significant milestone for our business outside the U.S.," said Mitch Slape, senior vice president of International Business Development for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. "In just 16 years, the Wal-Mart has gone from just one international retail location to 3,000, with nearly 600,000 associates serving 49 million international customers each week. In the last seven years, we've had a compound annual growth rate of 27.4 percent. These are tremendous achievements by any standard."

Wal-Mart's first venture outside the U.S. was the 1991 opening of a Sam's Club in Mexico. The following year the company entered Puerto Rico. In 1993, Wal-Mart formed an international division, setting the stage for expansion into Canada in 1994, Argentina and Brazil in 1995, and China in 1996. Since then, the company has seen significant growth in sales and earnings through entry into markets like the United Kingdom and Central America. Today, Wal-Mart operates stores in 13 markets outside the continental U.S. under some 50 different banners, and in August, announced plans to open a wholesale cash-and-carry operation in India by the end of next year.

"In the 1990s we were still learning how to compete globally," Slape said. "In 1999, we embarked on changes to our international strategy that led to significant growth in sales and earnings, including entries into the United Kingdom, through our purchase of ASDA, and Japan, through Seiyu. In the last year, we have entered a third phase of growth, where we are committed to unlocking the value of our international business. To do this, we're utilizing a three-part strategy. The first is portfolio optimization, which means making the right investments, divesting businesses in markets that have not been right for us, and expanding organically and through acquisition.

"The second part of the strategy is global leverage, working across our international markets to drive home value through our business assets, our capabilities, and our relationships," Slape continued. "This year, we added a third element to our international strategy, a plan for winning in each market where we operate. We look to have a distinctive position in the marketplace to sustain leadership, and ultimately generate material shareholder value. To do this, we will continue to be obsessed about the local customer, leverage our global scale, transfer know-how and develop the best local and global talent.

Slape cited several examples of this strategy in action, including the Wal-Mart Argentina team working with Wal-Mart Mexico to replicate WalMex's Bodega store concept and best practices, from human resources to real estate, to open a new store format called Changomas in Buenos Aires.

"Formats are just one area where elements of the strategic direction can be seen," Slape said. "Our international customers also see the benefits in merchandising, with the replication of the U.S. discount prescription drug program into Puerto Rico, Mexico and Brazil. In addition, our customers in Mexico can purchase ASDA's Extra Special private label products. These are just a few examples of how the Wal-Mart philosophy of saving people money so they can live better is being put to work for our customers all over the world."

Wal-Mart's 3000th international store is scheduled to open on November 22 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Branded as a Wal-Mart Supercenter, it will employ some 300 associates from the local area and, like Wal-Mart stores in the U.S., incorporate many sustainability features in its design. For example, a plant preservation area will feature 170 plant species from the Mata Atlantica, a Brazilian region threatened of extinction by deforestation. Three adult trees were transplanted to the store site, two Jerivas, a type of Brazilian palm tree native to the Mata Atlantica, and an avocado tree. The store facade will feature a "green wall," covered in climbing plants, contributing toward better integration of the building with the surrounding landscape. Two sewage treatment stations were built at the store site for water reutilization in the store's toilets and for garden irrigation. In the store's parking lot, a mixture of concrete and grass was used to allow better rainwater absorption, and therefore make it less disruptive to the environment than conventional materials.

About Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT)

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. operates Wal-Mart discount stores, Supercenters, Neighborhood Markets and Sam's Club locations in the United States. The Company operates in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Japan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom. Wal-Mart serves more than 176 million customers weekly in 14 markets. The Company's securities are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol WMT. For more information: www.walmartfacts.com.