Walmart has been considered one of the main leaders in mass distribution for several years. Founded in 1962, the brand has evolved a lot over time. We will analyze the group's strategy, explore the economic, but also organizational and strategic areas.
The company's key figures
Founded in 1962 by Sam Walton, Walmart will have a turnover of around $570 billion in 2024. The group also has more than 2.2 million employees worldwide, and 10,500 stores in 24 different countries.
To this day, Walmart is one of the largest employers in the world, as well as one of the most powerful distributors. This brand is now able to influence the entire global market.
Walmart's positioning in the sector
Walmart's position in the sector is dominant, the success of the supermarket is mainly due to the low prices it charges as well as its operational efficiency, with constantly renewed stocks and impeccable logistics.
The brand's slogan is "Save money. Live better".
The group stands out through several activities, first and foremost hypermarkets, which represent one of the main sources of revenue. These brands are very large sales areas, which are similar to those found in other countries, since consumers buy food and electronic products, but also clothes, etc.
Then there is Sam's Club. These are essentially warehouse-based stores where consumers register and have a membership.
E-commerce is of course taking up more and more space in consumers' lives, as they buy on Walmart.com or Walmart Marketplace.
The group also offers a range of financial services as well as health-related services.
Today, Walmart has a number of competitors, as we will see below, but the main one remains Amazon, the e-commerce giant in the world. The others are called Costco, Target and Ali Express.
However, it should be noted that its positioning as both a physical and online store gives it greater strength with consumers.
- Check out our case study on Amazon with its Porter's Five Forces, SWOT analysis and PESTEL analysis.
Walmart's SWOT Matrix
Strengths
As we said above, one of Walmart's main strengths is its notoriety around the world. Indeed, its presence in 24 countries demonstrates a strong and stable positioning, with a number of customers that has been steadily increasing for several years.
Inventory management, despite the size and diversity of the group, has a very advanced technology and, above all, is implemented in real time.
In terms of prices, they are very competitive, Walmart has real bargaining power with suppliers, which gives it a clear competitive advantage. The fact that we can access physical stores is also a positive point, because even today, many consumers like to look at the merchandise before buying it.
Walmart comes in several formats, hypermarkets, clubs, and e-commerce.
Weaknesses
However, Walmart, like all retailers, has some weaknesses. Indeed, there is a strong dependence on the American market, which represents more than 60% of total turnover.
Of course, the brands offer low prices all year round, but criticism is regularly voiced about the working conditions of employees, the low wages they receive and the pressure on them to get the job done faster and faster.
Finally, Walmart can hardly adapt, with its mode of operation and management, to certain markets, such as France in particular.
Opportunities
The Walmart Group continues to be influenced by the global rise of e-commerce, which has allowed it to develop a larger marketplace over the years, generating additional market share. Offering financial and health services is a way to assert one's presence in several areas. Finally, many technological innovations allow for better management and higher performance.
Threats
Competition is one of the most significant threats. As we said above, the main competitors remain Amazon and AliExpress for the e-commerce sector.
In addition, Walmart is impacted by various variations from an economic point of view, inflation or the exchange rate can impact the final prices.
Finally, employees work in conditions that are known to be difficult, while labor laws are intensifying and becoming stricter over the years. The same applies to environmental laws.
Growth and digital transformation
For a few years now, Walmart has seen the need to highlight a digital transformation; necessary transformation to maintain its competitiveness against Amazon in particular.
Walmart's strategy is essentially based on the link established between face-to-face and digital. The automation of certain tasks has also led to better performance and more relevant stock management. Diversification will also allow it to recover in the event of a crisis in one of the sectors to which the group belongs.
Walmart has a mobile app, a click-and-collect service, and home delivery. Loyalty programs allow consumers to earn vouchers and gifts.
Artificial intelligence has taken an increasing place in the life of the group, especially when it comes to inventory management.
Gradually, Walmart has acquired branches such as Flipkart in India and Jet.com, which was sold a few years ago.
Values and perspectives
Walmart's core values are respect for people, customer service, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. In addition, the group invests a lot of money in research and development, as well as in training and professional development.
Today, in 2025, Walmart wants to further improve its position around the world, by strengthening its position on the net, developing new, more personalized services, such as advertising in particular, and achieving carbon neutrality within about fifteen years.
Of course, Walmart will have to meet new challenges, such as having to adapt to the needs of consumers, who are constantly changing and evolving, but also managing its business despite geopolitical conflicts, not to mention maintaining its leadership position despite ever-increasing competition.
Conclusion
To this day, and in a more complex economic context, Walmart continues to embody the power of modern mass distribution. Thanks to its strategy, the brand unquestionably dominates the market at the global level. However, many challenges remain, in particular because of increasingly fierce competition and constant changes in buyers' consumption patterns. Walmart must therefore continue to innovate, always placing the customer at the heart of its concerns, but without forgetting employees and human values, in order to reduce turnover within teams.