How to stay ahead of your rivals: Adapt and Innovate

Doug McMillon kept a photo on his phone that list the top 10 retailers in the U.S. over the past few decades.

This is how Walmart held the No. 1 spot since the 1990s when it took over Sears.

McMillon says the retailer maintains a “healthy paranoia” to stay ahead of rivals, in the race against Amazon.

Doug McMillon by keeping the list of the top 10 retailers over the decades to remind him you have to innovate and adapt constantly.

“After learning from so many people… we know that retailers come and go, Businesses grow and they don’t change enough and they decline over time. Retailers do that on a bit of faster cycle. Healthy paranoia to stay ahead of rivals. Today , the retailer is seen as neck and neck with Amazon, which is starting to invest more in real estate and open stores while holding out a bigger platform for food and apparel online” McMillon said.

Walmart is acquiring digital brands and remodelling its stores – two key parts of its growth strategy as it announced that it plans to acquire Art.com to bolster its home décor business following recent acquisitions of lingerie brand Bare Necessities and plus-size clothing retailer Eloquii.

But Amazon has a different approach to growth as it continues to partner with established brands like Nike and J. Crew to sell their merchandise on Amazon.