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“The small stores were just destined to disappear… because the whole thing is driven by the customers, who are free to choose where to shop… the truth is that a lot of these folks just weren’t doing a very good job of taking care of their customers… And they didn’t do a very good job of reacting to our arrival either”.

“Most independents are best off, I think, doing what I prided myself on doing for so many years as a storekeeper: getting out on the floor and meeting every one of the customers. Let them know how much you appreciate them, and ring that cash register yourself. That little personal touch is so important… because no matter how hard Wal-Mart tries to duplicate it — and we try awfully hard — we can’t really do it”.

“I don’t care how many Wal-Marts come to town, there are always niches that we can’t reach — not that we won’t try. Just like everybody else, in order to survive, we need to keep changing the things we do.”

“Exercising your ego in public is definitely not the way to build an effective organization”.

“If you get too caught up in that good life, it’s probably time to move on, simply because you lose touch with what your mind is supposed to be concentrating on: serving the customer… A lot of what goes on these days with high-flying companies and these overpaid CEO’s, who’re really just looting from the top and aren’t watching out for anybody but themselves, really upsets me. It’s one of the main things wrong with American business today”.

“I have always cross-pollinated folks… and that has bruised some egos… But I think everyone needs as much exposure to as many areas of the company as they can get, and I think the best executives are those who have touched all the bases… I hate to see rivalry develop within our company when it becomes a personal thing… Philosophically, we have always said, submerge your own ambitions and help whoever you can in the company.”

“Had [Walmart] gotten smug about our early success… and just kept doing everything exactly the way we were doing it,… we would be out of business today… So I’ve made it my own personal mission to ensure that constant change is a vital part of the Wal-Mart culture… This requires overcoming one of the most powerful forces in human nature: the resistance to change. To succeed in this world, you have to change all the time.”