The future of retail with Walmart U.S.’s President ＆ CEO John Furner

On the most recent Walker Webcast, Walker & Dunlop's CEO, Willy Walker, was joined by John Furner, President and CEO of Walmart U.S., to converse on the future of retail, brick and mortar shopping vs. online shopping, the pandemic's impact on retail, teambuilding, and how John manages the strategic direction for more than 4,700 stores and more than 1 million associates.

A bit about each speaker:

Willy Walker is chairman and chief executive officer of Walker & Dunlop. Under Mr. Walker’s leadership, Walker & Dunlop has grown from a small, family-owned business to become one of the largest commercial real estate finance companies in the United States. Walker & Dunlop is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and in its first ten years as a public company has seen its shares appreciate over 800%.

John Furner serves as president and chief executive officer of Walmart U.S., where he is responsible for the strategic direction and performance of more than 4,700 stores and more than 1 million associates.

From 2017-2019, John served as president and chief executive officer of Sam’s Club. During his time as CEO, Sam’s Club had 11 consecutive quarters of positive sales comps, while increasing memberships. John started with Walmart as an hourly associate in 1993, at Store 100 in Bentonville, Arkansas. He has held important roles throughout the company, including assistant store manager, store manager, district manager, buyer, regional general manager, divisional merchandising manager, VP of global sourcing, general merchandise manager, head of marketing and merchandising for Walmart China based in Shenzhen, and chief merchant for Sam’s Club. 

He serves on the boards of directors for the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation and National Retail Federation. John has a bachelor of science in marketing management from the University of Arkansas.