Chapter 420 Sam Walton, Founder of Walmart
"Mr. Walter Wriston, I'm quite interested in the Walmart project you mentioned. If it's not too much trouble, it would be great if you could provide detailed information, along with the contact details of the person in charge," Lin Haoran said with a smile.
In reality, he had already made up his mind: he absolutely could not miss this opportunity to invest in Walmart.
Unexpectedly, after missing out on Apple, Citibank was about to miss out on Walmart as well.
"No problem at all!" Walter Wriston said as he retrieved a folder from the bookshelf behind his desk and handed it to Lin Haoran.
"This is all the information we gathered on Walmart, including the contact information of its founder, Mr. Sam Walton.
We put a lot of effort into investigating Walmart, but since we've decided not to invest, this data is now of no use to us."
Lin Haoran nodded and accepted the folder.
He skimmed through it briefly before closing it.
"I'll study it carefully later. As for whether I'll proceed with the investment, I'll give it serious thought.
However, Mr. Wriston, I'm curious — if Citibank isn't investing, is there any risk that other financial groups might step in?" Lin Haoran asked.
Walter Wriston smiled and explained, "Mr. Lin, you can rest assured.
At present, Walmart hasn't secured any other investors.
Their founder, Mr. Sam Walton, is still in New York, and they were very hopeful that Citibank would invest.
He's come to visit me several times in recent days.
Given their current situation, finding a suitable investor is indeed very difficult."
Lin Haoran finally relaxed — good, no real competition yet.
He had no intention of lingering at Citibank, but since they had helped him so much, he chatted a little longer with Walter Wriston before taking his leave.
Leaving Citibank, Lin Haoran instructed his driver to take him directly to Universal Investment Company's building.
Arriving at the office, he greeted Su Zhixue briefly and immediately dialed Sam Walton's pager number.
When it came to investing in Walmart, he didn't need to think twice.
In the future, Walmart would become the world's largest retailer.
Right now, however, it was only the third-largest retailer in the U.S., and its current position clearly didn't satisfy its ambitions.
Not long after, the telephone rang.
"Hello, who is this?" came the voice of an elderly man on the other end, slightly puzzled.
"Mr. Sam Walton? This is Lin Haoran.
You may have heard of me recently — I'm the one who recently sold my shares in Apple.
I got your contact information from Citibank's Chairman, Mr. Walter Wriston.
I understand you're seeking financing and are currently in New York.
If it's convenient, could you come to Universal Investment Company near Times Square?
I would very much like to meet and talk face-to-face."
Lin Haoran politely and directly introduced himself, then clearly provided the company's location.
"Mr. Lin? Very well! I'll be there within half an hour!"
Sam Walton's response was immediate, and his voice carried excitement and urgency.
"Alright, I'll be waiting for you," Lin Haoran replied with a smile.
After hanging up, Lin Haoran opened the folder he had gotten from Citibank and began reading.
Inside was Walmart's detailed company profile, compiled with the thoroughness one would expect from Citibank's intelligence team.
In the 1960s, the American discount store industry had started booming.
Sam Walton's business model perfectly matched the times:
bulk purchasing at low prices and reselling at competitive rates, combined with larger store formats offering a wide variety of goods.
In 1962, Sam Walton opened the first "Walmart" discount department store.
Between 1960 and 1966, discount department stores exploded in the U.S., growing from 1,329 stores to 3,503, with total sales volume surging from $2 billion to $15 billion — a 6.5-fold increase.
Meanwhile, giants like Kmart opened their first discount store in 1962 and rapidly expanded to 250 stores within five years, generating $800 million in revenue.
In comparison, Walmart in 1967 was still small, with just 9 stores and $9 million in sales.
Yet Sam Walton didn't stop expanding.
By 1970, Walmart had grown to 38 stores and $44.29 million in revenue.
However, such rapid expansion created heavy financial pressure, forcing Walton to take on millions in debt.
To ease the burden, Walmart chose to go public in 1970.
During the mid-1970s, the U.S. economy was in crisis with rampant inflation.
Facing rising rents, interest rates, and labor costs, many discount stores slowed expansion.
But Walmart, operating primarily in rural areas, leveraged its lower overheads to continue expanding aggressively.
Yet despite its growth, Walmart made little profit — earnings were plowed back into opening new stores, and some new locations were not yet profitable.
Thus, Walmart's financial situation today wasn't ideal — a key reason Citibank declined to invest.
Currently, Walmart's market capitalization was only $189 million.
Big, yes — but not dominant.
Lin Haoran read carefully, flipping through over twenty pages.
At the end, Citibank had bluntly concluded:
"Assets are not high-quality, competition is fierce, strength is average, and future prospects poor..."
Judging by Walmart's performance over the past two decades, it was indeed an average company at this stage.
Without knowledge of the future, even Lin Haoran wouldn't have looked twice at Walmart.
But he knew better.
Against all odds, Walmart would rise to become the strongest retail empire in the world.
He owned a supermarket chain himself — Wellcome under Dairy Farm International — but he knew full well that even if he brought Wellcome into the U.S. market, it wouldn't achieve much.
The American retail sector was fiercely protective and resistant to foreign players.
Thus, it made much more sense to invest in Walmart instead.
The information also revealed that Walmart planned to issue an additional 10% of its shares to raise $15 million.
To Lin Haoran, $15 million was nothing — not even HK$100 million.
But for Walmart, it was a lifesaving sum.
Retail businesses generated strong daily cash flow, but Walmart's debts were heavy.
Expanding aggressively without raising new capital would only deepen the debt burden.
That was why Sam Walton was seeking private investment — to expand without collapsing under debt.
Moreover, Walmart now faced a unique opportunity:
one that, if seized, could drastically change its future.
About twenty minutes later, the receptionist led an elderly, slightly balding man into the office.
It was clearly Sam Walton himself.
Lin Haoran immediately stood up with a welcoming smile and shook his hand warmly.
"Mr. Walton, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Lin Haoran," Lin said warmly.
Sam Walton returned a sincere smile.
"Mr. Lin, of course I know you. It's an honor to meet you.
Thank you so much for taking the time — this means a lot to Walmart."
After they sat down, Lin Haoran motioned for the receptionist to bring a cup of hot coffee for Sam Walton, and then got straight to the point.
"Mr. Walton, I've reviewed Walmart's information thoroughly.
I greatly admire your business philosophy and model.
I believe Walmart has tremendous potential, especially in the current market environment," Lin Haoran said earnestly.
Sam Walton's eyes lit up with joy.
He knew all too well how hard it had become to find investors willing to back retail businesses during an economic crisis.
Hearing Lin Haoran's words filled him with renewed confidence.
"Mr. Lin, your affirmation is very important to me.
Walmart has always been committed to providing consumers with quality goods at low prices.
I firmly believe that if we stay the course, we'll win the market," Sam Walton said, his voice full of excitement.
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