(Bloomberg Businessweek) -- McMillon got his first Walmart job as a teenager, unloading trucks at an Arkansas distribution center. He returned after college and impressed higher-ups (including the Walton family) with his merchandising and leadership skills, swiftly climbing the ranks. So it was no surprise when he was chosen five years ago to run the retail empire, which generates a half-trillion dollars in sales annually from more than 11,300 stores. What has been surprising, though, is McMillon's willingness to buck the retailer's deep-red-state roots on issues such as diversity, employee wages, and now guns, with no guarantee that blue-state shoppers will fill the gap. His request for customers to refrain from openly carrying guns in its stores was called “shameful” by the National Rifle Association, but McMillon's stance was clear: “The status quo is unacceptable.”
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Bret Begun at bbegun@bloomberg.net, Jeremy Keehn
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