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Walmart Weighs In: 10 Rules for Building a Better Business

Words of wisdom from Walmart’s founder

Before Walmart was one of the biggest companies in the United States, it was a small business that served a local community. Back in 1962, Walmart founder Sam Walton opened a single store in Rogers, Arkansas. While the company would expand exponentially after that, Sam always remembered 10 simple rules that helped his shop succeed in the first place. If you’re starting or growing your own venture, read Sam’s advice from his autobiography, Sam Walton, Made in America: My Story, and you may also be able to turn your small business into a big success.

1. Commit to your business

Believe in it more than anybody else. If you love your work, you'll be out there every day trying to do it the best you possibly can, and pretty soon everybody around will catch the passion from you—like a fever.

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2. Share your profits with all your associates & treat them as partners

In turn, they will treat you as a partner, and together you will all perform beyond your wildest expectations.

3. Motivate your partners

Money and ownership alone aren’t enough. Set high goals, encourage competition and then keep score. Don’t become too predictable.

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4. Communicate everything you possibly can to your partners

The more they know, the more they’ll understand. The more they understand, the more they’ll care. Once they care, there’s no stopping them.

5. Appreciate everything your associates do for the business

Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They’re absolutely free—and worth a fortune.

A business professional opens a gift bag and reacts with excitement and joy. Coworkers nearby smile and celebrate with her.

6. Celebrate your success

Don’t take yourself so seriously. Loosen up, and everybody around you will loosen up. Have fun. Show enthusiasm—always. All of this is more important, and more fun, than you think, and it really fools competition.

7. Listen to everyone in your company

Figure out ways to get them talking. To push responsibility down in your organization, and to force good ideas to bubble up within it, you must listen to what your associates are trying to tell you.

A business professional sits at their desk, looking off-camera at a person out of focus. The professional smiles and looks deep in thought.

8. Exceed your customers’ expectations

Give them what they want—and a little more. Make good on all your mistakes, and don’t make excuses—apologize. Stand behind everything you do.

9. Control your expenses better than your competition

This is where you can always find the competitive advantage. You can make a lot of different mistakes and still recover if you run an efficient operation. Or you can be brilliant and still go out of business if you’re too inefficient.

A male garden worker holds a flower in a small pot, handing it over to a woman talking to him. They are surrounded by plants in a greenhouse.

10. Swim upstream

Go the other way. Ignore the conventional wisdom. If everybody else is doing it one way, there’s a good chance you can find your niche by going in exactly the opposite direction.

A business professional takes notes from his laptop while seated in an office which has yet to be unpacked. He is surrounded by Walmart boxes.

For more small business secrets to success, check out the Walmart Business Content Hub. There, you’ll find advice to help your company grow, from marketing tips to budget planning and more.

To keep your business stocked with the supplies you need, sign up for Walmart Business. A Walmart Business membership will let you take advantage of low prices on bulk items, multi-user accounts with budget management tools and a full order history for both in-store and online purchases.

If you already have a Walmart Business account, take your membership to the next level with Walmart Business+. You’ll get free shipping on most items,¹ as well as free delivery from local Walmart stores on orders over $35.² A Walmart Business+ membership also offers 2% cash back rewards on orders of $250 or more.³ All told, your company could save more than $500 per year.⁴

If you take Sam’s lessons to heart, then you’ll be well on your way to controlling your expenses, receiving valuable feedback from your staff, and—most importantly—delighting your customers.

¹Excludes most Marketplace items, freight and certain location surcharges.

²Restrictions apply. Additional fee applies for Express delivery.

³Exclusions apply. See full terms for details.

⁴Savings based on 1 free $35+ delivery order vs. $9.95 fee and 1 free shipping order under $35 vs. $6.99 fee biweekly, plus 2% Walmart Business rewards on monthly order >$250 (average value of $400).

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