Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., doing business as Walmart, is an American multinational retailing corporation that operates as a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores, and grocery stores. Headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, the company was founded by Sam Walton in 1962 and incorporated on October 31, 1969., Walmart has 11,695 stores and clubs in 28countries, under a total of 63banners. The company operates under the name Walmart in the United States and Canada. It operates as Walmart de México y Centroamérica in Mexico and Central America, as Asda in the United Kingdom, as the Seiyu Group in Japan, and as Best Price in India. It has wholly owned operations in Argentina, Chile, Brazil, and Canada. It also owns and operates the Sam's Club retail warehouses.Walmart is the world's largest company by revenue - approximately $480 billion according to the Fortune Global 500 list in 2016 - as well as the largest private employer in the world with 2.3million employees. It is a family-owned business, as the company is controlled by the Walton family. Sam Walton's heirs own over 50percent of Walmart through their holding company, Walton Enterprises, and through their individual holdings. Walmart is also one of the world's most valuable companies by market value, and is also the largest grocery retailer in the U.S. In 2016, 62.3percent of Walmart's 478.614{{nbsp sales came from its U.S. operations.
