The Industrial Giant Reborn

"It can be said that under normal circumstances, no matter how well-run any ordinary supermarket is, it is unlikely to beat supermarket giants such as Celtic or Sears with a turnover of tens of billions of dollars. It is the difference between heaven and earth. But after the oil crisis, everyone’s living habits have changed, and they want to buy cheaper supermarket products. They will inevitably look for new cheap supermarkets, the ones with good quality, and I found Wal-Mart, but once my living habits have changed, it is difficult to change, so I invested in Wal-Mart." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.

"Wal-Mart only has 120 supermarkets, which is far behind Celtic or Sears." Sam Walton said with a smile.

"This is now, maybe ten years later, Wal-Mart will become Celtic's biggest challenger." Chen Zhiwen said with a light smile.

"My dream is that 20 years later, Eric, you believe in my company more than I do." Sam laughed.

"Then just wait and see." Chen Zhiwen said indifferently. Now the turnover of Wal-Mart Supermarket is almost increasing by 30-50% every year. Who would have thought that this increase could last for decades, and Walton can't think of it now.

"Let's stop here for the future, let's talk about the present." Sam Walton paused and said: "Eric, although after Wal-Mart goes public, anyone can buy the stock, you think Wal-Mart is very promising and buy it , I feel very happy, but as a company that has just been listed for a few years, we only have about 30% of the stock in circulation on the stock market. You bought 10% by yourself and have not stopped yet. This is very bad for the secondary market , if it continues like this, the stock exchange will require our company to increase shares again, which is not what I need.”

"Isn't it better to increase the company's capital by increasing the share capital for business expansion?" Chen Zhiwen said with a smile.

"I don't need other funds, and I don't want our family's shares to decrease, so I hope Eric can stop the acquisition in the secondary market. You are now a major shareholder of Wal-Mart. I have also investigated your background. You We also have certain abilities, we can cooperate to make Wal-Mart better, instead of confronting for some small interests, which is good for us." Sam Walton said with a smile, but his eyes were fixed on Chen Zhiwen faces.

"No problem, cooperation is a win-win situation. This has always been my principle." Chen Zhiwen nodded in agreement without thinking about it.

For Wal-Mart's stock, he naturally hopes to get more and more. The rate of return is too high, but everything has a balance. In the case of too many acquisitions, the Walton family who is in control will definitely not be happy. If it happens Economic conflicts are too uneconomical.

It is actually very simple for Walton to hold him back. Their family is the controlling shareholder of Wal-Mart, and the management rights belong to them. They can completely increase their own shares in order to dilute the shares of all shareholders in the market, including the shares held by Chen Zhiwen. Such an approach would also consume the Walton family's funds.

Taking a step back, the Walton family can also introduce other investors, which also dilutes the shares of all owners. For the controlling family of the company, it is not a big problem for outsiders to hold shares. The problem lies in the concentration of external shares. Investors, let everyone have less shares, then it will not threaten their management rights.

Another trick is to take Chen Zhiwen, the shareholder, as a stakeholder of the company, which is similar to the identity of the controlling shareholder with real power. From a legal perspective, because the controlling shareholder with real power knows the company's future strategic development plan, the company's internal financial data and other confidential information , so the China Securities Regulatory Commission has strict restrictions on these people's selling and buying of their own company shares. Once they are on this list, it will be difficult to acquire shares in the secondary market on a large scale.

Of course, the Walton family will not really let outsiders become relevant parties with real power, but if it is really deadlocked, the US Securities Regulatory Commission will be happy to believe them instead of a foreigner.

There are also other methods. Those people on Wall Street, as long as they have money, have methods. Therefore, when Walton made a statement, Chen Zhiwen could only stop the acquisition on the surface. How much will there be? After all, the circulating shares of the entire Wal-Mart supermarket are very small. Even decades later, the Walton family still holds more than half of the shares.

"Okay, from now on, I'm very happy to have a friend like you." Sam Walton said with a smile. There is no real benefit to winning, and if the funds are used for company operations, many new stores can be opened.

"As a friend and a shareholder of Wal-Mart, I also have my own resources, and I hope to make a little contribution to the development of Wal-Mart." Chen Zhiwen said calmly.

"What aspect? I don't plan to open a branch in Asia, not even in Europe, the US market is too big." Sam Walton said.

"I'm not talking about this, but the purchase of Wal-Mart supermarkets. We all know that Asian products are cheaper." Chen Zhiwen said with a smile: "I have a trading company in Hong Kong that specializes in providing various products for supermarkets. Provide all kinds of daily necessities, such as clothes, shoes and socks, bedding, snacks, hardware supplies, etc., all of which are small items with cheap prices and good quality. It can also further reduce procurement costs for Wal-Mart, or further benefit consumption. Or, this is the win-win situation I want.”

"Purchasing goods from Asia, I have considered this issue a few years ago, but it is very difficult to operate." Sam Walton thought for a while and said: "Eric, your proposal is very good, you are from Hong Kong, and you are from Hong Kong. You have certain network resources, and you are also a shareholder of Wal-Mart, at least in terms of cooperation, I can trust you."

"There will be no problem in terms of quality." Chen Zhiwen said.

"Is it because of Costco? I heard that your supermarket has opened 5 stores on the east coast." Sam Walton said.

"Yes, consumers in Los Angeles and San Francisco recognize the quality of Hong Kong products." Chen Zhiwen nodded.

I am in a supermarket in the United States. It is not a secret that people want to check it. No one in Hong Kong knows it because they don’t think about it. Of course Cha can know.