Texas Walmart Shooter Racist Attack

Austin, Texas, The perpetrator of the 2019 Walmart shooting in Texas, who expressed racist views about Hispanics and caused the deaths of 23 individuals, has consented to provide over $5 million in compensation to the victims of the incident. This agreement was confirmed by a judge’s ruling on Monday,

Patrick Crusius received a sentence of 90 consecutive life terms in July after admitting guilt to federal hate crime charges in connection with one of the most severe mass killings in the country. According to court records, his lawyers and the Justice Department came to a settlement about the amount of restitution, which was subsequently endorsed by U.S. District Judge David Guaderrama,

There is no evidence to suggest that Crusius, who is 25 years old, possesses substantial assets. The individual, who was 21 years of age and had discontinued his studies at a community college, allegedly embarked on a journey spanning over 700 miles from his residence near Dallas. According to authorities, his intention was to specifically target individuals of Hispanic origin, with an AK-style weapon both within and outside the premises of a business. Prior to the commencement of the attack, Crusius published a racially motivated written work on the internet, which expressed concerns about a Hispanic “invasion” of Texas.
There is no evidence to suggest that Crusius, who is 25 years old, possesses substantial assets. The individual, who was 21 years of age and had discontinued his education at a community college, allegedly embarked on a journey of over 700 miles from his residence in close proximity to Dallas. The purpose of this journey, according to the police, was to specifically target individuals of Hispanic origin using an AK-style rifle, both within and outside the store. Prior to the commencement of the attack, Crusius published a racially motivated written piece online, which expressed concerns about a Hispanic “invasion” of Texas.

Crusius admitted his guilt in February when federal prosecutors removed the possibility of the death penalty. However, Texas prosecutors have expressed their intention to seek the death penalty for Crusius at his trial in state court. The trial date has not been scheduled yet.

According to court papers, Crusius will pay $5,557,005.55 as part of the arrangement reached between the gunman and the government.

Founder Sam Walton opened the first Walmart store on July 2, 1962, in Rogers, AR, with a simple but clear mission: to help people save money so they could live better. By 1967, the company had opened 24 stores and generated $12.7 million in sales. Just two years later, the company officially incorporated as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

Fast-forward to the current day and the Walmart picture is epitomized by the following statistics;

• The company has subsidiaries in 24 countries including Canada, the UK (ASDA), Central America, South America, and China. 
• Worldwide, Walmart makes more than $1.5 billion daily.
• Walmart tops the list of America’s biggest companies in terms of revenue with a colossal $611bn while it also boasts a 25% share of the supermarket chain sector. 
• It is estimated that 90% of all Americans live within 10 miles of a Walmart store.
• Including its eCommerce branches, Walmart has over 160 million different products available to its customers. 

The Walmart empire now consists of over 11,500 brick-and-mortar stores globally, although it has faced obstacles along the way. 

Early Growth & Going National (The 1960s & 70s)

Having opened its first store at 719 W. Walnut Street, Walmart’s early expansions focused on the local market. In fact, it wasn’t until 1968 that its first stores outside of the Natural State appeared. These were located in Sikeston, Missouri, and Claremore, Oklahoma. 

While Walmart would become one of the world’s most iconic brands in its own right, Walton openly took inspiration from various sources. The name was a nod to Sol Price’s FedMart while the design of its first store was heavily influenced by the Ann & Hope store in Rhode Island.

As Walmart approached its second decade, the company had also expanded into the territories of Kansas and Louisiana while its opening stock split (the first of 10 in the 20th century) occurred with a price of $47 – up from the initial price of $16.50 when first hitting the stock market two years earlier. 

At this time, the Wal-Mart Cheer was also introduced in another example of Walton taking inspiration (this time from a South Korean factory) from others to enhance his own organization. The daily recital would quickly become an integral feature of the company’s culture.

The rest of the decade saw Walmart’s national growth continue with stores opening in multiple locations across the United States. Perhaps the most significant of those was Texas, a territory that the company entered in 1975 and has since become home to more stores (over 500 and counting) than any other state.

During this time, the company also opened its first pharmacy (1978) and the Walmart Foundation (1979). 

The 1980s started with another major milestone as the company’s revenue hit $1bn for the first time, making it the fastest business in history (at that time) to achieve this feat. However, attempts to unionize Wal-Mart’s Searcy distribution center did fail at this time. 

Huge discount warehouses known as Sam’s Clubs and aimed at small businesses signal the next step in the Walmart journey, with the first opening in 1983. It is located in Midwest City, Oklahoma, but several others soon follow. In fact, the total surpasses 50 within five years, highlighting the company’s ability to grow by reaching new audiences.

Before the decade is over, Walmart hits several other big milestones. The first hypermart was opened in Garland, Texas (1987) while computerized point-of-sale systems were added to accelerate and improve transaction processes (1983). In 1988, the company introduced the superstore concept en route to recording after-tax profits in excess of $1bn just one year later. By this time, the organization had also surpassed 1,000 stores.

The 1990s would be a monumental decade in the Wal-Mart story, for good and bad. In 1991, the company became a multinational company by bringing Sam’s Clubs to Mexico City, Mexico. Sadly, the following year saw founder Sam Walton die at age 74. His son, Sam Robson Walton became chairman and held the position until 2015.

After enjoying its first $1bn sales week in 1993, the company continued its expansion into new markets. Canada (1994, by purchasing WoolCo), China (1996), and the United Kingdom (1998, through the acquisition of ASDA) all joined the grocery shopping revolution. 

However, the company did not escape scrutiny in this decade. Shortly after Walton’s death, the corporation’s “Made in America” and “Bring It Home to the USA” campaigns were attacked by NBC’s Dateline, leading to several enforced in-store marketing changes. Despite the challenges, though, Walmart’s first $100bn sales year came in 1997.

Walmart had now been America’s most profitable retailer for over a decade. But a new millennium would deliver new tests and opportunities.

Leading The Way In An Ever-Changing Landscape (2000-Now)

As the new millennium ushered in a digital age, Walmart quickly identified the need to enter the eCommerce arena. Walmart.com was launched in 2000, making it one of the first retailers to add online shopping to the equation after seeing the success of Amazon, eBay, and other digital platforms.

Despite being one of the early adopters, Walmart’s online endeavors arguably failed to tap into the true potential of eCommerce for another decade-and-a-half until the purchase of Jet.com in 2016. While the corporation closed the site four years later, it was a milestone moment in the company’s battle with Amazon – who had by this point opened its first brick-and-mortar store in Seattle and set its sights on further developments in the physical world.

In 2001, Walmart reached a market share of 16% to cement its place as America’s top food retailer and subsequently took the #1 spot on the 2002 Fortune 500 list – a feat it would repeat two years later.

It was another decade in which the corporation would face challenges, notably in 2003 when 50 janitors across 60 Walmart stores were arrested for working illegally. This resulted in a multi-million-dollar lawsuit along with damaged reputation while the following year’s California supermarket strike, gender discrimination lawsuit, South Park episode depicting Wal-Mart as a local business killer, and opposition to a proposed supercenter in Inglewood, California posed further threats. 

Still, the company continued to revolutionize shopping experiences. Its Site to Store service (2007) would be emulated by many others due to its immense popularity while the company was up to annual revenue of over $400m before the end of the decade.

As business landscapes and the world as we know it underwent more rapid changes than ever before, the company’s focus was largely spearheaded by two key features: technology and ethics. The company’s disaster relief efforts of 2005 were accompanied by renewable energy and a commitment to zero waste. In the 2010s, $2bn was contributed to ending world hunger while its veterans program launched in 2013. In 2017, Project Gigaton to reduce greenhouse gases was formed alongside a commitment to reducing carbon footprints by 10% in just five years. 

Walmart Pay helped streamline transactions for millions of customers while the first Walmart Health Center was opened in 2019. Walmart.com’s InHome Delivery and free NextDay delivery services would prove to be great additions to bolster the firm’s online efforts. They came at a good time too as the COVID-19 pandemic would force businesses across all sectors to adapt. 

The pandemic was the catalyst for a significant shift towards online shopping and alternative real-world consumer experiences in which most people reduced the frequency of visits but increased the cost per transaction. Some key takeaways included;

• Online sales climbed 74% as a direct result of the pandemic.
• The company’s Carrier Pickup service was introduced to give consumers added flexibility regarding product returns.
• Brick-and-mortar stores decided against reintroducing 24/7 opening hours. 
• Walmart Marketplace grew to an estimated 70,000 sellers in 2020 to finally challenge Amazon after years of failing to truly take off.
• The corporation opened its Spark crowdsource delivery as a white-label service.

Walmart also used this time to enter fintech, AR, and other new areas to continue its growth and gain interest in new and exciting markets. 

Founded with a simple goal of helping consumers save money on everyday purchases, Walmart quickly grew from being a local company to a regional, national, and global powerhouse. While the corporation has faced political and economic obstacles, not to mention the pandemic, it has continued to stay ahead of the curve by embracing new tactics and technologies at every turn. 

The corporation enjoyed a meteoric rise in its infancy and has shown no sign of slowing down. Today, Walmart boasts over 11,500 stores selling grocers, clothes, electronics, financial products, and virtually any item a consumer could need in their daily life as well as a thriving eCommerce platform that is second only to Amazon. 

While the operation may have changed beyond all recognition, its initial mission statement remains.