In 'Sam Walton: Made in America,' Sam Walton shares his personal and professional journey, from his early life in Kingfisher, Oklahoma, to the founding and expansion of Walmart. The book is a first-person account supplemented by quotes from friends, family, and colleagues. It highlights Walton's core values, such as the importance of hard work, customer satisfaction, and competitive pricing. The autobiography also provides insights into Walton's leadership style, his approach to business, and the lessons he learned throughout his career. The book was published posthumously in 1993 and offers a compelling and inspiring look at the life of one of America's most successful entrepreneurs.
This book details the life and legacy of Sol Price, who transformed the retail industry with innovative concepts such as warehouse shopping and membership-based pricing. Starting with his early life and his transition from a successful lawyer to a retail entrepreneur, the book chronicles the establishment of FedMart in 1954 and later the Price Club, which influenced retail giants like Walmart, Kmart, and Costco. It highlights Sol Price's emphasis on ethical business practices, fair employee treatment, and customer-centric policies, as well as his innovative strategies such as self-service shopping, consolidation of merchandise, and low-margin pricing. The book also explores his impact on the retail landscape and his later contributions to gentrification of dilapidated areas[2][4][5].
This book is both a memoir and a writing guide. It details Stephen King's life, from his childhood and early writing endeavors to his struggles with addiction and his near-fatal accident in 1999. The book is divided into sections that cover King's life ('C.V.'), the nature of writing ('What Writing Is'), writing mechanics ('Toolbox'), his advice on the craft ('On Writing'), and his recovery from the accident ('On Living: A Postscript'). King offers practical tips on writing, including the importance of vocabulary, grammar, and style, as well as the need for consistent writing routines and ruthless editing. He emphasizes that good writing comes from within, driven by curiosity, wonder, and emotional honesty rather than commercial motives.
What I learned from reading Sol Price: Retail Revolutionary by Robert Price.
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[6:50] He believed in developing strong operating efficiencies, and he continually emphasized passing on savings to customers.
[8:48] It's pretty incredible to think about that Sol's ideas have created trillions of dollars of value.
[11:18] You can always understand the son by the story of his father. The story of the father is embedded in the son. —Francis Ford Coppola: A Filmmaker's Life by Michael Schumacher. (Founders #242)
[14:00] Stephen King on the belief and support he received from his wife: “Having someone who believes in you makes a lot of difference”— Stephen King On Writing: A Memoir of the Craftby Stephen King. (Founders #210)
[16:00] True education is gained through the discipline of life. —Henry Ford
[19:45] Sol kept a small sign in his office: “Do it now.”
[24:00] Sol finds an idea future generations of entrepreneurs will use: A membership retail store targeted to a specific niche.
[24:45] When you have people driving far distances to save money that is a very good sign. — Sam Walton: Made In America by Sam Walton. (Founders #234)
[26:45] Daniel Ek interview on the Acquired podcast.
[39:10] If you’re not spending 90% of your time teaching, you’re not doing your job. —Jim Sinegal.
[39:45] You train an animal, you teach a person.
[40:00] He was not a fan of training manuals because he believed that manuals were a substitute for thinking.
[43:00] What does limited selection have to do with efficiency? Because payroll and benefits represent 80% of a retailer’s cost of operations, pricing advantage follows labor productivity. Fewer items result in reduced labor hours throughout all of the product supply channels. Put simply, the cost to deal with 4,500 items is a lot less than the cost to deal with 50,000 items.
[50:21] The operating efficiencies of the warehouse concept and the direct delivery of products from the suppliers to Price Club made it possible to sell merchandise for less.
[55:00] Costco and Sam's were expanding aggressively while Price Club remained tentative.
[1:03:30] Sol was a poster child for the American dream. His immigrant parents were born in a small Russian village. Sol was the first in his family to graduate college. He earned a law degree. He became an exceptionally successful businessman and philanthropist, celebrated 70 years of marriage, was a good father who instilled high values in his sons, and he never walked away from responsibility. It doesn’t get much better than that.
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“I have listened to every episode released and look forward to every episode that comes out. The only criticism I would have is that after each podcast I usually want to buy the book because I am interested so my poor wallet suffers. ” — Gareth
Be like Gareth. Buy a book: All the books featured on Founders Podcast
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