Walmart founder Sam Walton died more than 30 years ago, but the retail giant he started is still thriving and making his family even richer. The Waltons were recently named the world's richest family by Bloomberg, with a striking net worth of $432 billion.
Already a powerful dynasty, the three Walton children and their offspring became the richest family in 2024 thanks to their stake in the retail giant started by their father.
Steady e-commerce growth and keeping prices low during a time of inflation put Walmart shares on track for the best year in decades, Reuters reported. The retail chain has also managed to edge out competitor Target, attracting affluent customers thanks to its line of designer dupes. Those factors added billions to the Waltons’ net worth and beat fellow billionaires including the Hermès family and the Ambani family to become the world’s richest.
Walmart’s winning streak
Walmart pulled off a brand makeover and is beating Target as the new destination for aspirational Gen Z shoppers looking to find a deal, analysts have noted. While Target's stock sank in November after missing Wall Street forecasts, Walmart had a strong quarter. Sales rose to $169.59 billion, and global e-commerce sales rose by 27%.
The retail brand has been spending the better part of the year courting a new customer. Well-off shoppers (those who make more than $100,000 annually) represent 75% of the retail companies’ gains, CFO John David Rainey told Yahoo Finance.
A winning streak for Walmart means profits for the Walton family as Bloomberg notes that they are “richer than ever,” thanks to their stock holdings. A 80% spike in stock this year catapulted the already immense wealth of the Waltons by $172.7 billion, the outlet adds. The offspring of Walton account for about 45% of Walmart’s stock, estimates Forbes.
The surviving first rung of heirs of the Walton family include Sam’s three children Rob, Jim and Alice. They alongside, Walton’s daughter-in-law Chirsty, grandson Lukas, and Sam’s brother and business partner’s children Ann and Nancy, are the seven heirs that account for the 45% of Walmart stock, according to Forbes.
The Walton dynasty
Sam Walton founded Walmart in 1962 and Sam’s Club in 1983. His model was “low prices and great services,” as inspired by the dime store he once owned, according to company materials.
Rob Walton, Sam’s son, was once Walmart’s chairman and retired from said position as well as the board earlier this year. He’s worth more than $113 billion, notes Forbes. He is the owner of the Denver Broncos, after buying the team alongside his daughter and son in-law in 2022. His son-in-law, Greg Penner, serves as the chairman of the board at Walmart.
Indeed, the family has entered the sports world, as Bud’s daughter Anne Walton-Kroenke’s billionaire husband owns multiple teams between the Denver Nuggets and Arsenal Football Club. The Waltons have basically taken over Colorado sports, accounting for all pro sports teams in the state besides the Colorado Rockies, noted SBNation in 2022.
Jim Walton, previously also a Walmart board member and currently the chairman of the Arvest Bank Group, is worth a similar cool $112 billion. Alice Walton is worth $104 billion, building a reputation for her love and funding of the arts. She was named the richest woman in the world this September, as Walmart stock soared.
Heirs’ wealth vs. worker pay
The Walmart heirs’ fortune stems from a company with a reputation of doling out low-wages for its more than 2 million employees worldwide. In recent years, executives have touted pay raises and benefits, like college tuition reimbursements, as signs of progress. Walmart did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
Even so, average hourly wage for Walmart frontline associates is more than $17.50, according to the company's website. While higher than minimum wage, that’s still less than the living wage needed to live comfortably in some areas of the country.
In 2020, Walmart was listed as the top employer of Medicaid enrollees in three states and top employer for SNAP recipients, according to a Government Accountability Office report.
Since then, Walmart has raised pay four times, the company told Supermarket News. As companies scrambled to retain talent during the Great Resignation, Walmart raised wages to reduce turnover and try to remain competitive with other companies that were paying better.
