The men who made Wal-Mart huge
From a single store in Arkansas, five CEOs have manned the helm as Wal-Mart became the biggest company in the world.
Sam Walton
Tenure: 1962-74 and 1976-88
Stock performance: Up 6,985% (from 1974)
Pro: The godfather of modern discount retailing, the master merchant proved that small-town markets weren't so small-time.
Con: Botched his first attempt at appointing a successor (see Ron Mayer).
NEXT: Ron Mayer
Last updated September 09 2010: 5:43 AM ET
Sources : The Center of Research in Security Prices, Bloomberg Markets
