<p> Since Wal-Mart was first founded in 1962, it has expanded to well over 10,000 total retail units, spanning the United States and abroad. Over those changing 52 years, Wal-Mart needed to adapt and ultimately evolve to the increasingly competitive and changing retail market. Starting from the original big-box store all the way down to the new Wal-Mart to Go, let’s take a closer look at the world’s largest retailer’s evolution over the years…<img src="https://cdn.andnowuknow.com/legacyWriterImages/walmart_page_032414.jpg" alt="Cropped images 032414" /><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> <B>1960s – Wal-Mart</b>: This is the original Wal-Mart, now most often known as a Discount Store. On average, these stores are 105,000 square feet and typically don’t offer groceries. According to 24/7 Wall St., in the past five years, Wal-Mart has been closing down these stores to convert them into the mega-sized Supercenters. Only 508 of these stores are left in 2014, down from 810 in 2010, 24/7 Wall St. reports.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> <B>1980s – Wal-Mart Supercenter:</b> Offering both groceries and merchandise, Wal-Mart’s Supercenters are a beast to be reckoned with in terms of square footage. The average size of a Supercenter is 179,000 and can even range up to 260,000 square feet, according to 24/7 Wall St. There are currently around 3,288 Supercenters in the U.S., an increase of 130 in the past year.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> <B>1980s – Sam’s Club:</b> More Sam’s Club locations have been rolling out across the U.S. as well, with 632 stores in operation today, up from 605 in 2010. These membership stores average around 134,000 square feet.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> <B>1998 and 2011 – Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market and Wal-Mart Express:</b> This is the era where we see perhaps the biggest evolution in Wal-Mart’s strategy. Prior to the 90s, Wal-Mart has been expanding its larger warehouse stores and has seen great success in dominating the retail landscape. With Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market and Wal-Mart Express, the company has been able to enter into a smaller market, further expanding its footprint in more compact areas. There are currently about 407 Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market locations, up from 190 in 2010. The average size for these stores is 40,000 square feet. As for Wal-Mart Express, these stores average about 15,000 square feet, with only approximately 20 locations throughout the U.S.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> <B>2014 – Wal-Mart to Go:</b> Wal-Mart to Go is the company’s newest, one-of-a-kind format, and it’s the smallest one yet! The new 2,500 square foot store is designed as a convenience store, grocery, and quick-serve restaurant hybrid. There’s only one location in existence so far and it’s right near Wal-Mart’s corporate headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"> <B>2014 and Beyond:</b> What does Wal-Mart have in store for the future? 24/7 Wall St. reports that the company is currently testing a Wal-Mart on Campus convenience store located on or near college campuses. The sky’s the limit for this retailer…who knows what we’ll see next?</p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><p><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href=" http://corporate.walmart.com/our-story/history/history-timeline" target="_new"> Wal-Mart </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
