Walmart news 

Following successful drive-in movie, game day and Halloween events at its car parks last year, Walmart is launching Mother’s May Markets at selected Supercenters in the US. Mother’s Day becomes Mother’s Month With its focus on moms and Mother’s Day, Walmart is launching a month-long series of events, recognising the challenging year many will have experienced due to the pandemic. This inclu...

First went the shelf-scanning robots, now the pickup towers are being removed or hibernated. What do these changes mean for Walmart’s automation journey? Fanfare and flagships The Wall Street Journal has reported that Walmart is removing or decommissioning around 1,600 Pickup Towers which have been installed within its US stores over the last few years. This follows on from reports last y...

Walmart is partnering with Texas-based French bakery and café chain, la Madeleine, to test a new Express prototype at stores in the Dallas-Fort Worth market. 10 pilot locations to open The partnership will see 10 test la Madeleine Express locations open with Walmart Supercenters, its hypermarket format. The first is expected to launch in Garland this July, with the remainder opening in the ...

Walmart has participated in the latest funding round for Cruise, a self-driving, electric vehicle startup. Builds on existing relationship Walmart initially partnered with Cruise last year to develop a delivery pilot in Scottsdale, Arizona. This area been a major focus for the retailer, undertaking several different pilots over recent years. These include programmes with Nuro in Houston, Ga...

In our latest report, we look at the initiatives retailers are putting in place as they strive to improve online grocery profitability following a year of accelerated growth. Five areas of focus for improved profitability  Following rapid growth last year, which saw grocery ecommerce sales almost double in the US to just under $70bn, in 2021 retailers are laser-focused on improving channel ...

Walmart has appointed Jean Batthany as senior vice president, chief creative officer, further bolstering its US marketing team. Building a new marketing organisation This appointment follows on from the recruitment earlier this year of Courtney Carlson as senior vice president of marketing, joining the retailer from Under Arrmour where she held the role of head of marketing. Batthany joins ...

Saladworks, a leading fast-casual salad brand, has partnered with Ghost Kitchen Brands in a deal that will almost double its footprint across the US and Canada. The agreement will bring 60 non-traditional locations to the US and 30 to Canada by the end of 2021, many of which will be located inside Walmart stores. Saladworks capitalising on grocery store traffic Ghost Kitchen Brands has part...

Walmart is opening its third-party online marketplace to international suppliers, supporting its plans to significantly extend its range of products and improve ecommerce profitability. Verification of sellers As reported by Bloomberg, Walmart will open the Walmart.com marketplace to companies based outside of the US. While sellers will no longer require a domestic address or business tax i...

We look at how US food and drugstore retailers are playing a pivotal role in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across the country as part of the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program (FRPP). Vaccine distribution exceeds over 71m people With over 71m people having received at least one vaccine dose, representing over 20% of the population, the US has made significant progress with its distribu...

Walmart Canada is partnering with Ghost Kitchen Brands to open ghost kitchens in its stores. Five kitchens planned initially Ghost Kitchen Brands has partnered with over 20 restaurant brands to operate ghost kitchens across Canada. Its operating model and technology-led solution enables it to produce meals from all of its partners within a single kitchen. Through this partnership, it will o...