Walmart exec hints at NY expansion

NEW YORK Ongoing efforts by Walmart to leverage its size and scale to be a force for positive change are yielding meaningful improvements to the company’s reputation that will facilitate expansion into urban markets, according to Leslie Dach, Walmart’s EVP corporate affairs.

Dach was the featured speaker during the opening session of Walmart’s 17th annual meeting for the investment community Tuesday night. His presentation began in unconventional fashion with a choir of Walmart employees singing “my kind of town Chicago is,” in deference to the city where Walmart recently secured approval for a meaningful number of new stores in the years ahead.

“We had a success in Chicago, and we learned a lot there,” Dach said.

The key learning was that in a challenging economy, the creation of 10,000 jobs, $300 million in tax revenue, $1 billion in capital expenditures and improving access to affordable food matters to local elected officials, according to Dach.

“By telling that story, we create a compelling value proposition. We have set a standard there and taught a lesson for others, but we also know that all politics is local in this country and we are going to have to fight that fight everywhere we go.”

If how Dach closed his comments is any indication, where Walmart goes next could be New York as the choir closed the evening presentation with a rendition of "New York, New York."