Sam Walton: Made In America
- Downloads：5383
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-07-31 08:54:06
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Sam Walton
- ISBN：0553562835
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
As Sam Walton himself said， this is "。。。a story about entrepreneurship， and risk， and hard work， and knowing where you want to go and being willing to do what it takes to get there。 And it's a story about believing in your idea even when maybe some other folks don't， and about sticking to your guns。" It's the story of how Walton parlayed a single dime store in a hardscrabble cotton town into Wal-Mart， the largest retailer in the world。 The undisputed merchant king of the late twentieth century， he never lost the common touch。 Here Walton tells his extraordinary story in his own inimitable words。 Genuinely modest， but always sure of his ambitions and achievements， Walton shares his thinking in a candid， straight-from-the-shoulder style。
"Here is an extraordinary success story about a man whose empire was built not with smoke and mirrors， but with good old-fashioned elbow grease。"
"Here is an extraordinary success story about a man whose empire was built not with smoke and mirrors， but with good old-fashioned elbow grease。"
Reviews
Brijesh
，
Great biography。 Was fascinating to hear the humble beginnings of walmart to the giant it is now。 You walk away feeling like you got a degree in retailing， merchandizing， and leadership skills。 It is fantastic to hear the fine details of his thought process in deciding on the first store and as he creates a repeatable process。 His passion is amazing， even after being a leader for extended period he is so excited by the smallest of ideas （ex。 idea of a greeter that one walmart tried）。I am really Great biography。 Was fascinating to hear the humble beginnings of walmart to the giant it is now。 You walk away feeling like you got a degree in retailing， merchandizing， and leadership skills。 It is fantastic to hear the fine details of his thought process in deciding on the first store and as he creates a repeatable process。 His passion is amazing， even after being a leader for extended period he is so excited by the smallest of ideas （ex。 idea of a greeter that one walmart tried）。I am really curious what he would think about Amazon and e-commerce。 While he was at the helm， he surrounded himself with the right people - ex。 the story of uprading their IT systems， setting up a private satellite network etc。 so perhaps he would have detected the risk early and challenged amazon。 。。。more
JEFFERY VERNETTI
，
Surprisingly good！
Daniel Thornton
，
Probably the greatest businessman of the 20th century。 An incredible book with an abundance of lessons for business and retail。
Asad Khan
，
This book is by the founder of the legendary Wal-Mart corporation that we know of today， Sam Walton。 The book says it's his story but to be truthful it's the story of Wal-Mart more than anything else。 This book is about what Wal-Mart stands for， what it believes in， how it came to be， how it got where it is today， what drives Wal-Mart， and everything one would like to know about this incredible retail company， the largest in the world。Sam Walton leaves you mesmerised by his excitement， his deter This book is by the founder of the legendary Wal-Mart corporation that we know of today， Sam Walton。 The book says it's his story but to be truthful it's the story of Wal-Mart more than anything else。 This book is about what Wal-Mart stands for， what it believes in， how it came to be， how it got where it is today， what drives Wal-Mart， and everything one would like to know about this incredible retail company， the largest in the world。Sam Walton leaves you mesmerised by his excitement， his determination， his hard work and his style of doing business and makes you believe how significant these things are and what it takes to make a company or a project or anything to this pinnacle。 His story tells you that although luck plays an important factor， his story isn't about luck so don't believe in luck theory。The book is pretty straightforward and acts as an ambassador for Wal-Mart， a manual to comprehend what Wal-Mart is before joining the company。 The writing isn't very amusing， or exciting， it cuts everything and comes to the point， directly to the point Sam wants to say and it reflects that he doesn't care what you think because he's confident about what he's done， what he has attained and takes pride in it。This book tells the story of hard work and passion and that it's these things that you comprehend again and again from this book。 It becomes lengthy， kind of an advertisement for Wal-Mart at times and seems to be an opportunity to clear out all attackers that it has obtained over years and I must say he delivers a reasonable response。It's a decent book to understand Wal-Mart， Sam Walton， the Walton family and what it takes to accomplish legendary things， the writing may exhaust you at times but stick to it， it's worth the read。 。。。more
Philip
，
Can be viewed as course book for business and capitalism。
Leonardo Chan Jr。
，
I enjoyed reading this book。 Sam Walton is probably one of the most humble human being that I've ever known。 Even though he's the retail king — you could still learn from him things that you could apply to your life even if it's not about business。 I thought he's lived a very good life。 I enjoyed reading this book。 Sam Walton is probably one of the most humble human being that I've ever known。 Even though he's the retail king — you could still learn from him things that you could apply to your life even if it's not about business。 I thought he's lived a very good life。 。。。more
Danit Jantarawirot
，
- What a man- The entrepreneur of the century- Wake up with improving things Ming set- Stand up tall。 Look into the eyes。 And speak with them。 - Satisfaction Guarantee- Decision making to the customer facing level- Listen to everyone for the good idea- The Walmart way- Don't fix the problem by adding another layer of bureaucracy - What a man- The entrepreneur of the century- Wake up with improving things Ming set- Stand up tall。 Look into the eyes。 And speak with them。 - Satisfaction Guarantee- Decision making to the customer facing level- Listen to everyone for the good idea- The Walmart way- Don't fix the problem by adding another layer of bureaucracy 。。。more
Andrew Swain
，
I thought that Sam's story was intriguing and inspiring but a lot of the time I felt like the narrative dragged。 I thought that Sam's story was intriguing and inspiring but a lot of the time I felt like the narrative dragged。 。。。more
Aditya Kulkarni
，
One of the best books written about retailing and the basic behavioral characteristics driving the decision making written by God himself。
Nimisha
，
What an extraordinary life of Sam Walton！！。 He was truly a great business man。 I loved reading it
Abhinav Gandotra
，
Picked up this book from the list of best business autobiographies and the book lived up to the expectations。 Sam Walton was the original retail entrepreneur。 The book details on how he changed the entire retail industry forever with basically two key principles : 1） Hyperlocal concept of everything available in the same store 2） High discounting to achieve economies of scale。 From a single store to almost ubiquitous Walmart， the journey is worth a read for all professionals and aspiring entrepr Picked up this book from the list of best business autobiographies and the book lived up to the expectations。 Sam Walton was the original retail entrepreneur。 The book details on how he changed the entire retail industry forever with basically two key principles : 1） Hyperlocal concept of everything available in the same store 2） High discounting to achieve economies of scale。 From a single store to almost ubiquitous Walmart， the journey is worth a read for all professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs。 Besides， Sam Walton's philosophies about business and life in a general， are much to learn from。 Highly recommended。 。。。more
Jason D
，
An exceptional story of an exceptional man。 This is man grew it into an empire by looking ahead and being real with people。 Old fashioned service combined with new ways of thinking does the trick。
Yunuskhan
，
I absolutely recommend for everyone who want built perfect and simple billionaire lifestyle 😁🤑😎
Bhuvanesh Kandasamy
，
The book shares Sam Walton's journey as an entrepreneur。 I was impressed by Sam's competitiveness and his ability to constantly learn about his competitors and implement ideas which were better than his peers。 Sam grew Walmart based on his philosophy of deep discounting by putting customers first。 His hustle to find discounts for his customers were interesting。 Walmart grew it's sales rapidly by having discounts better than its competitors and over the years build strong systems and processes th The book shares Sam Walton's journey as an entrepreneur。 I was impressed by Sam's competitiveness and his ability to constantly learn about his competitors and implement ideas which were better than his peers。 Sam grew Walmart based on his philosophy of deep discounting by putting customers first。 His hustle to find discounts for his customers were interesting。 Walmart grew it's sales rapidly by having discounts better than its competitors and over the years build strong systems and processes that improved the efficiency of the business。 Building strong distribution centres and expanding based on them， Leveraging information by having a centralized inventory management system to monitor the supply and sales of the products were something ahead of its time。 But the treatment of his associates in the lower end of the organisation pyramid was unpleasant and Sam has admitted it in this book。 This book will be a great guide to any wannabe entrepreneur to build a business from scratch and an introduction to many ideas which helps in running a successful retail business。 Sam's accomplishment in the retail space might never be replicated in the future。 。。。more
Alex Bulankou
，
Quintessential American story told with sincerity， simplicity and unapologetic dedication to the business。 The first chapters of hits and misses are especially captivation， but the book looses its energy and gets repetitive towards the end。 Understandably， it does not cover more recent rise of online retail。
Victor Muthoka
，
When Passion Drives YouWhen I picked this book up， I knew a bit of Sam Walton’s hustle， but boy did I not have the full picture 😱。 Sam Walton details the Wal-Mart story in satisfactory detail。 What you can’t miss noticing is the lengths he’d go to， driven by unrelenting passion。 His desire to share profits w/ all employees under their intriguing program is something that spoke to me。 I come away from this book w/ a keener desire to sell。 And that’s the beauty of this read， if you’re a merchant。 When Passion Drives YouWhen I picked this book up， I knew a bit of Sam Walton’s hustle， but boy did I not have the full picture 😱。 Sam Walton details the Wal-Mart story in satisfactory detail。 What you can’t miss noticing is the lengths he’d go to， driven by unrelenting passion。 His desire to share profits w/ all employees under their intriguing program is something that spoke to me。 I come away from this book w/ a keener desire to sell。 And that’s the beauty of this read， if you’re a merchant。 Sam also lists his 10 principles that he feels led to his success: Commit to your businessShare profits w/ associates Motivate partners Communicate a lotAppreciate your associates Celebrate success & be objective in failure Listen to everyone in your firmExceed customer expectations Control expenses better than othersSwim upstream 。。。more
Zoloo Purevzol
，
It was written and published even before I was born。 I thought it might be too old school。 But I am glad I have read it。 It has so many potential advices and mentioned how much of a persistency and hard work were taken behind one successful company。 There were so many ups and downs。 Protoganist himself was kinda of an insane man。 He did not want to stop even after his massive success。 He always wanted more。 More branches， more products， more more。 I think this kind of person is just born as he i It was written and published even before I was born。 I thought it might be too old school。 But I am glad I have read it。 It has so many potential advices and mentioned how much of a persistency and hard work were taken behind one successful company。 There were so many ups and downs。 Protoganist himself was kinda of an insane man。 He did not want to stop even after his massive success。 He always wanted more。 More branches， more products， more more。 I think this kind of person is just born as he is。 。。。more
Sameer
，
An inspirational book on how Mr Walton went about creating the retail giant Wallmart。 Truck drivers of the company had Esops。 A must read for inspiring entrepreneurs。
Pawan Dwivedi
，
。
Sudhir Ahluwalia
，
Provides a perspective into the personality of one of the greatest entrepreneurs of our time。
Brad Bevers
，
I have heard for years that this was excellent， but just never wanted to pick it up and read it because I am not that interested in retail。 Really glad I finally did， it deserves the reputation it has。 Great read about one of the best entrepreneurs of the last 100 years。 Loved this book and how he was able to innovative and still stay true to his principles， and how hard he continued to work even though he didn't have to。 His reflections at the end on his legacy were very honest and a helpful re I have heard for years that this was excellent， but just never wanted to pick it up and read it because I am not that interested in retail。 Really glad I finally did， it deserves the reputation it has。 Great read about one of the best entrepreneurs of the last 100 years。 Loved this book and how he was able to innovative and still stay true to his principles， and how hard he continued to work even though he didn't have to。 His reflections at the end on his legacy were very honest and a helpful read for anyone who is building their own business。 Highly Recommended。 。。。more
Michael
，
Entertaining book。 Makes me look at Walmart with completely different eyes。 I appreciate the business model more after reading this book。
Judy
，
Enjoyable reading about Walton who was driven by a passion for retailing and bringing customer focused stores to small towns in this country。
Dinara Radjabova s
，
This book was a must read for me， since we are very connected with WalMart。 Of course I loved the book。 I feel very proud to say that I worked at WalMart。
Igor Guerreiro
，
Overall it's a great book。 A must-read， especially for those who have a retail business or are an entrepreneur。We can learn how one of the biggest retail companies has grown up。 Also， the book tries to map out the ''ins and outs'' about Walton's life and explain how his mentality and approach interfered in the Culture he created and implemented in the business。Plus， it's also a good book to understand American history， since WALMART was a gamechanger。Cons:Very often I thought the book is too rep Overall it's a great book。 A must-read， especially for those who have a retail business or are an entrepreneur。We can learn how one of the biggest retail companies has grown up。 Also， the book tries to map out the ''ins and outs'' about Walton's life and explain how his mentality and approach interfered in the Culture he created and implemented in the business。Plus， it's also a good book to understand American history， since WALMART was a gamechanger。Cons:Very often I thought the book is too repetitive。 。。。more
Francesco
，
A perfect story of the American dream， all the way from the start to the international success。 Truly inspiring！
Edwin Setiadi
，
Learning about retail business from the very bestGood ol’ Sam Walton。 During my university years， whenever I visit any book store this book will always be in the top 5 books there， if not the 1st。 No matter if it’s the biggest Borders （don’t you just miss Borders？） or a tiny airport bookshop。 But I always thought what could this book - one that is written by the owner of Wal-Mart - possibly teach me？And throughout the years this book kept being mentioned by some of the brightest and most success Learning about retail business from the very bestGood ol’ Sam Walton。 During my university years， whenever I visit any book store this book will always be in the top 5 books there， if not the 1st。 No matter if it’s the biggest Borders （don’t you just miss Borders？） or a tiny airport bookshop。 But I always thought what could this book - one that is written by the owner of Wal-Mart - possibly teach me？And throughout the years this book kept being mentioned by some of the brightest and most successful people as one of their main inspirations， a must read business classic， with the latest one （that I read） referred to by Jeff Bezos。 So after more than a decade wondering， I finally decide to read the book。 And what could it possibly teach me， someone who isn’t in the retail industry？ As it turns out， quite a lot。This book was written at the last few moments of Sam Walton’s life when he became ill， with him reminiscing about his journey in building his ultimate baby， the merchant giant Wal-Mart。 And there’s so much to learn from this humble billionaire。 First and foremost， there are many lessons about the business: on supply chain， logistics， accounting stuff， how to size up your competitors， how to expand， all the way to their choice of locations and addressing some of the infamous stigmas， such as the one that claim Wal-Mart kills small mom and pop stores， and provide answers that make perfect sense。 The book also highlight the way he organises the structure of Wal-Mart that benefitted the family and the employees， about the fun company culture that he establishes， how they revamp every small town’s atmosphere， how they still focus on one store at a time even when they’ve become a huge corporation， and the one thing he asks to his grand children and great-grand children NOT to do， or else he will come back and haunt them: selling their Wal-Mart stocks to finance their extravagance， that would leave the family’s controlling stake vulnerable to hostile take over。Then there are also lessons from their failures， the most expensive mistake he ever made， the tiny details of franchise and lease contracts that can safe you or screw you， how to nurture good business relationships （even with your competitors）， what NOT to do through extracting lessons from failed competitors， and most importantly for Wal-Mart’s key to success （which become the core of this book）: his many， many lessons on pricing， and controlling the so-called absentee ownership。In fact， he is not shy to share most （if not all） of his formula to success， as he believed that competition makes everyone better。 For example， in describing Wal-Mart’s early strategy on pricing， which became one of the key engines of growth for his stores: “The basic discounter’s idea was to attract customers into the store by pricing these items—toothpaste， mouthwash， headache remedies， soap， shampoo—right down at cost。 Those were what the early discounters called your “image” items。 That’s what you pushed in your newspaper advertising—like the twenty-seven-cent Crest at Springdale—and you stacked it high in the stores to call attention to what a great deal it was。 Word would get around that you had really low prices。 Everything else in the store was priced low too， but it had a 30 percent margin。 Health and beauty aids were priced to give away。”Furthermore， this autobiography is also lessons about hard work from early age， and lessons on frugality where despite of his riches he still drives an old pickup truk， buys his clothes at Wal-Mart， and refuses to fly first class even though he can afford to （but then again he also owns a private jet that he flew himself， but one that he purchased only after weighting the cost of travel that would be more efficient if he flew himself）。 The book is also part testimonials by his family， friends， partners and associates， even his competitors， with nice little anecdotes along the way。 One of my favourite stories is when he was caught taking notes in his competitor’s store， Price Club， and how he dealt with it with such grace and humor （and responded by Price Club’s owner with equal respect and warmth）。Indeed， Sam Walton has this folksy charm and wit that makes him instantly likable， as well as a wise grandfather vibe that is reflected in the way he writes the book。 It is as if he is telling about his life’s stories to his grandchildren in one delightful seating， with lessons that are also applicable to any other areas in business and in life。 And so， as it turns out， you don’t need to be in the retail industry to appreciate the abundance of knowledge coming out of this book。 。。。more
Michelle Peterson
，
I loved him and wanted him to be my grandpa！ What a great story！
Vishnu Ajit
，