Walmart opened its first store outside the United States in Mexico in 1991.
The retailer entered Mexico through a joint venture with Cifra, a major Mexican retail company. Its first international location opened in Mexico City, beginning an expansion that eventually made Walmart one of the world's largest multinational retailers.
Walmart later acquired a controlling interest in Cifra and renamed the business Walmart de México. The Mexican operation became one of the company's most important international markets.
The 1991 opening is distinct from Walmart's founding in 1962 and its international expansion into Canada in 1994. Mexico was the company's first foreign market, making the date a notable milestone in its corporate history.