Jared T.’s Post

#innovationstories The Birth of a Retail Giant: How Walmart Began its Journey The year is 1962. Sam Walton, a man with a vision for bringing low prices to everyday people, opens the doors to the first Walmart store in Rogers, Arkansas. This single store marked the humble beginnings of what would become a global retail powerhouse – Walmart Inc. Driven by the principle of offering "everyday low prices," Walmart quickly gained traction in rural communities. Within just seven years, Walmart had grown to 24 stores, and by 1969, it was officially incorporated as Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. The company initially focused on rural areas, where access to affordable goods was limited. From the outset, Walmart prioritized customer satisfaction by offering a wider selection, lower prices, and a convenient shopping experience. Walton constantly sought new ways to improve operations and reduce costs, ensuring his company could offer the lowest prices possible. Walmart established a no-questions-asked return policy, allowing customers to return most unopened items within a year for a full refund. This built trust and loyalty, further solidifying their commitment to customer satisfaction. #walmart #retailbusiness #entrepeneruship #groceryshopping

Five Maneuvers Walmart is Making to Update its Business for What's to come In a unique retail scene, flexibility is the foundation of life span. As customer inclinations advance and innovation reshapes the manner in which we shop, industry monsters like Walmart are constrained to reevaluate their methodologies. Perceiving the need to remain on the ball, Walmart has set out on an extraordinary excursion, carrying out five vital maneuvers to update its business for what's in store. READ MORE https://lnkd.in/gUGATXkE

Apparently self-checkouts have become the new #retail apocalypse. The hits just keep on coming, with each new title more sensational than the last. This BBC article I've attached is the second mainstream story I saw in the last week. Costco Wholesale rethinking self checkout sounds so much more stirring than saying Costco ramped up self checkout across all its stores to begin with! Grocery or mass merchandise is not the only segment of relevance. Just ask UNIQLO or Inditex. Self checkout also doesn't have to just mean dedicated SCO lanes with installed registers, just ask Tesco or Carrefour. As with many other things overlooked by such reporting, the truth lies somewhere in between - the answer is not manned checkouts over self checkouts or vice versa. Rushing into proclaiming winners and losers doesn't help when consumers need both based on their shopping journeys in the store.  #retailing #retail #consumerbehavior #grocery #conveniencestores #cpg #onlineshopping #fashionretail #ecommerce #commerce

Hindsight is always 20/20. 👀 With a deeper understanding of the past, one Walmart Merchant was able to define the path forward in the pickle category. And so can you. Avoid getting your brand in a pickle by booking a demo to learn more about Walmart Luminate Shopper Behavior and chart your path forward: https://lnkd.in/gsrS8XJe. #WalmartLuminate #WalmartDataVentures #CustomerInsights #ProductInnovation

Self-checkout is an excellent case study of the challenges #retailers face with new #technology; the need to balance operational efficiency and cost savings with the needs of associates and the ever-shifting (and often unclear) preferences of #consumers. #SCO started as a way to accelerate #checkout for small basket orders while enabling #retailers to reduce store #labor costs. #Covid greatly expanded the rollout of #SCO lanes, fueled by consumers’ desire for #touchless experiences … and the promise of ever-greater #cost savings. But as #shopping behavior normalized, consumers grew frustrated with having to continue to take on the work of scanning and bagging, especially with larger #grocery orders. This was exacerbated by years of price increases, which left many shoppers feeling taken advantage of, and has contributed to the “15% of self-checkout users [who] admitted to stealing an item on purpose.” A cautionary tale of getting too far ahead of what #consumers were / are willing to take on … and a needed course correction by the industry. https://lnkd.in/ePs_wSHM

In less than two weeks both Target and Walmart reported strong sales, attributing it to price cuts and rollbacks. Starbucks CEO got fired with complaints of high prices. Target and Walmart spoke of cutting prices. The former Starbucks CEO talked of delivering value. Speak directly to customers and prove it through your actions. They care about the price the pay, especially at this moment. Value means nothing. It's arbitrary. But the $2.99 price for a gallon of milk is not. Grocers, especially regional grocers, who compete against Walmart and Target need to understand their customers and the competition, so they can find areas to cut prices or keep them low through promotions, TPR's, or every day low prices. There are many strategies to do it. But it starts with understanding your competitors, your customers, and being able to effectively execute. To show that you are delivering lower prices for where your customers care. People remember the price the pay! https://lnkd.in/gFJi_kid

The #selfcheckout bubble is starting to pop. This month, Target announced it was limiting self-checkout to 10 items or fewer at most of its 2,000 stores across the U.S. Meanwhile, Walmart is reducing self-checkout hours at certain locations and reserving lanes for Walmart+ customers and Spark drivers during certain times. Dollar General is also pulling self-checkout stands at 300 stores and limiting self-checkout to five items or fewer at another 4,500 stores. Read more: https://buff.ly/4ajARbc

I chatted with Fortune about how Walmart is gaining customers, including from Target. The highest growth in terms of new customer additions has come from those making over $100,000 a year. The forward challenge will be to retain these shoppers. Former CEO, Bill Simon, is concerned that once the economic cycle picks up Walmart will lose many of the shoppers it has gained. In terms of retention, our own research shows that 77% of those who have started shopping at Walmart for groceries over the past couple of years say they intend to continue frequenting the store. This fits in with other shifts during previous downturns: the dollar stores picking up more shoppers who didn't drift away, and Aldi making gains that it retained for the long haul. This is all good news for Walmart, although it arguably needs to be aware that a sizable minority may switch. The bigger challenge, however, is to get more of these newer customers to cross the aisle to buy general merchandise – and there is far more hesitation here. However, Walmart’s committed investment to improve its stores will help on this front. Thanks to Fortune for including more of my thoughts in the article linked in the comments. #retail #retailnews #shopping #bigbox

Why a simple $4 item makes Costco great? During my recent visit to the top-selling Costco in Mexico City, the routine Costco exploration with my brother-in-law took an unexpected turn to a phenomenal human behavioral experience. After having shopped for most of items I usually buy during my trips because I cannot find them in the US, a peculiar product caught my eye—Potato chips with Miguelito, a spice reminiscent of school days, blending chili powder and sugar. Initially hesitant, I observed a sudden surge in interest. Shoppers swiftly grabbed the distinctive chips. In a minute, more than 8 customers have snatched the $4 bag, prompting me to ask one of them about their take. He was buying it because his wife loved it and they haven't found them in stock for over 3 weeks. Needless to say, I needed to get one! The checkout revealed a common theme—almost every cart around me featured these chips. The woman behind my, with just a few items asked me if they were that good. I just said "Ma'am, I don't know! but everyone is buying them and I just need to do the same!." Later, I shared the chips with my sister's family. The verdict? An amazing product. In the realm of customer experience and retail, Costco consistently stands out. It's not just about service but the variety of products and value they offer. Needless to say, the scarcity factor—typical of warehouse clubs, making each find feel special. Costco usually ranks on top for NPS across the retail industry. Their employees are engaged and they deliver a phenomenal #CustomerExperience... perhaps their biggest opportunity, double down their digital efforts. #HX #EX #CX 🙌🥔🛒 #CostcoExperience #UnexpectedFind #CostcoMexico #ShoppingChronicles