How much does Walmart matter in the United States? The company uses this statistic to get at this:

Walmart operates more than 5,200 stores across the country, and 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of a Walmart or Sam’s Club, the company estimates. 

In this story, this figure is cited regarding the rollout of electronic vehicle chargers. The implication is that many potential drivers could then access Walmart’s network.

Part of the Walmart percentage could be the sheer number of stores and it could also be about corporate decisions about where to locate. The company grew from its first store in Rogers, Arkansas to being in many communities across the United States. Do all retailers go for the same sort of locations as Walmart?

It would be interesting to compare to other kinds of business. Take fast food chains that have thousands of locations; would 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of a McDonald’s or a Domino’s? Or what about distances from dollar stores? (Or were once within 10 miles of a Blockbusters?)

Or we could consider other important places. How many Americans live within 10 miles of a park? A school? A police or fire department?

All that said, being close to roughly 300 million people in the United States is an achievement. This likely contributes to figures I’ve seen that suggest roughly 90% of Americans shop at a Walmart at least once a year. And a story from several months ago suggested 95% of Americans were within a 3 hour delivery of Walmart. Proximity has to help even if Walmart cannot be everywhere.