BENTONVILLE, Ark., Jan. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT), today announced that Enrique Ostale, president and CEO of Walmart Chile, formerly D&S, has been named executive vice president, president and CEO of Walmart Latin America, where he will oversee Walmart's operations in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Nicaragua.

Based in Walmart's Latin American regional office in Mexico City, Ostale will assume his new role on March 1st. Eduardo Solorzano will retire as president and CEO of Walmart Latin America and continue to serve as chairman of the board of directors at Walmart de Mexico.

Ostale joined D&S in 1989, serving as the manager of the company's finance division, merchandising division and Lider format division, and then as the CFO. In 2000 Ostale left D&S to serve as CEO of El Mercurio Online, the website for Chile's El Mercurio Newspaper. He later served as dean of the business school of the Adolfo Ibanez University from 2002 to 2006. In 2006, Ostale rejoined D&S as president and CEO. Following Walmart's acquisition of D&S in 2009, Ostale was key in leading D&S's successful transformation to Walmart Chile.  

Gian Carlo Nucci, currently executive vice president and COO of Walmart de Mexico, has been named to replace Ostale as president and CEO of Walmart Chile. Nucci joined Walmart de Mexico in 1993 and served in several roles, including responsibilities for all Sam's Club operations in Mexico, before being named vice president, VIPS Restaurants, in 2003. He then served as vice president, Superama, before being promoted to senior vice president, Sam's Club and then executive vice president, Specialized Formats.  Nucci was appointed COO of Walmart de Mexico in January, 2010. 

"Eduardo, Enrique and Gian Carlo have each made contributions that have fostered the development of Walmart in Latin America," said Doug McMillon, president and CEO of Walmart International. "For 27 years, Eduardo has been a champion for our customers in Mexico and across Latin America, and we are pleased he's staying on as chairman of Walmart de Mexico. Under his leadership, the first Walmart Bank was founded, Central America became part of Walmart de Mexico and the Every Day Low Prices strategy extended to Central and South America. Likewise, Enrique's leadership in Chile has been key to both the successful integration of D&S with Walmart following our 2009 acquisition, and also to Walmart Chile's ongoing success. Gian Carlo's experience and record of accomplishments at Walmart de Mexico ensure we will continue to innovate in service to our customers in Chile."

"Walmart's Latin American operations hold tremendous potential for our company and I look forward to building on our success in these markets," Ostale said. "I am honored to expand our mission across the region to provide many more families, many of whom today lack access to products and services at low cost, the opportunity to live better lives."

Walmart has more than 373,000 associates and 3,832 retail units in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico and Nicaragua.

About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices.  Each week, more than 200 million customers and members visit our 10,400 stores under 69 banners in 27 countries and e-commerce websites in 10 countries. With fiscal year 2012 sales of approximately $444 billion, Walmart employs more than 2.2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmartnewsroom. Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com and http://www.samsclub.com.

SOURCE Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.