After last year, Walmart Grocery is working to regain share after losing some rank to retailers like Kroger and Albertson’s.  

Bloomberg article offers an explanation, “The share loss is due to several factors. Walmart’s penny-pinching core shoppers don’t eat out as often as those who frequent mainstream grocers, so those chains are enjoying a greater uplift as their clientele shift their budgets to homemade meals. Traditional supermarkets also have largely abandoned their usual discounting strategies given the unprecedented demand for food, so they’re selling more at full price, boosting their gains.” 

In order to boost Grocery sales the retailer has expressed the following: 

  • Walmart is seeking to maintain or improve price leadership to continue to offer their signature “Everyday Low Price” incentives to shoppers. 
  • Buyers are communicating expectations that supply must improve in order to keep shelves stocked to fulfill more grocery options like online pickup and delivery (OPD). 
  • Walmart continues to lean into 3+ year omnichannel investments urging suppliers to have a strong digital strategy established with Walmart Media Group alongside in-store planning.  
  • Walmart is beginning to add Walmart.com fulfillment centers known as “market fulfillment centers” or MFCs onto their existing stores to have the capabilities to store more non-perishable items. As Walmart Corporate states, “Instead of an associate walking the store to fulfill an order from our shelves, automated bots retrieve the items from within the fulfillment center. The items are then brought to a picking workstation, where the order can be assembled with speed.” 
  • Walmart is continuing to focus on the execution of online pickup and delivery (OPD), while also testing new capabilities such as InHome Delivery to meet the varying needs of shoppers. 
  • OPD penetration as a % of POS continues to increase. This is an indicator of how important it is to ensure that all digital content is optimized.  Grocery suppliers should also be putting together their Digital advertising investment plan to maximize impact on OPD sales.  Strategically managing and investing in Online Pickup and Delivery is imperative for Grocery suppliers who want to have a successful partnership with Walmart today.

Interested in learning more about how your brand can win the hearts of Walmart Grocery customers? Harvest Group is here to help you navigate the ever-changing Online Pickup and Delivery platform. 

Join us for a Grocery trend deep dive with experts from our Walmart, Sam’s Club, Kroger and Target teams on May 19th at 12pm CST. Sign up here.