Grocery Delivery takes convenience to a new level, and our customers love it. With Delivery Unlimited, we’re providing incredible value for our customers and leveraging our unique assets to save them both time and money,” said Janey Whiteside, Walmart’s chief customer officer.
Those unique assets include a network of more than 4,500 supercenters nationwide that are being leveraged in others ways as well. Walmart’s Grocery Pickup service has expanded at a blistering pace the past few years and is projected to be available at more than 3,000 locations by year end.
An even more noteworthy development is on the horizon too. Walmart this fall is piloting an in-home grocery delivery service in Pittsburgh, Vero Beach, Fla., and Kansas City. The service will be available to roughly one million people in those markets and involves delivery employees placing products directly in customers’ refrigerators and pantries.
To execute its delivery programs, Walmart relies on a network of 45,000 of its own personal shoppers and various delivery services. Specially trained employees complete a three week training program and those selected for the in-home delivery pilot must meet additional training and length of employment requirements to qualify.
The combination of improvements to in-store fresh merchandising and operations and aggressive expansion of omnichannel food initiative have led to a resurgence of same store sales growth at Walmart and propelled the company’s share price to new highs. Speaking about the Grocery Pickup service in early September at the Goldman Sachs Global Retail Conference, Walmart chief merchandising officer Steve Bratspies said the service has been highly incremental because it brings in new customers and repeat business.
“The average basket size is about two times what a standard grocery basket is, so obviously we're excited about that,” Bratspies said.
The baskets are likely to get bigger too as Grocery Pickup evolves to simply Pickup as a larger assortment of general merchandise ordered online becomes available for pickup.
Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart operates more than 11,300 stores under 58 banners in 27 countries, and ecommerce websites, employing 2.2 million-plus associates worldwide. The company is No. 1 on Progressive Grocer’s 2019 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States.