1950s
Boom Times
1950
Starting on a Dime
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The first Walmart opened on July 2, 1962, In Rogers..
1950
16-year-old Troy Almand was Walton 5&10’s first clerk. During the spring of 1950, he helped the Walton family stock shelves and set the store for its grand opening.
1950
Sam and Helen Walton and their children move to Bentonville, Arkansas. Sam opens Walton's 5&10, a Ben Franklin franchise, on May 9.
1951
After extensive remodeling, Walton’s 5&10 has its official grand reopening on March 15. During its first year of operation, the store has sales of $75,000.
1952
Sam Walton opens a second variety store, in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Willard Walker joins the company to manage the store.
Walton Store Floor Tiles
Our earliest example of Every Day Low Cost (EDLC). Sam saved when he accepted a slightly mismatched batch of tiles at a lower cost.
1953
Sam buys his first plane, an Ercoupe Model 415-C.
Play Video1954
Sam and Bud Walton open a Ben Franklin variety store in Ruskin Heights, a subdivision in Kansas City, Missouri.
1955
Bob Bogle is hired as the first manager of Walton's 5&10 in Bentonville, freeing Sam to focus on expansion.
“I've always enjoyed challenging our people. If you expect great things from folks, they'll expect it from themselves. Our people have never let us down.”
Sam Walton
1955
Charlie Baum joins the company, taking over Willard Walker's role as manager of the Fayetteville store.
1957
The Ben Franklin store in Ruskin Heights is leveled by a tornado.
By the Numbers
By the end of the 1950s, Sam Walton has eight Ben Franklin stores, ringing up approximately $1.4 million in annual sales.
