Source: So Cast

Walmart has confirmed that it will be rolling out a new discount targeting online shoppers who purchase items from their online store. The retailer said that starting April 19th, shoppers who ship products purchased from their platform to any of their 4,100 stores in the US will be eligible for the discount. So how does it work? Say for example you are buying a flat screen TV at a price of $1,698. As you checkout, you will be given an option to shop it either to your current location or at any of the Walmart stores in the US. If you decide that the TV should be shipped to a Walmart store near you, the retailer will give you a $50 discount on the purchase. In case you decide to just have the flat screen TV shipped to your home, the price tag will remain the same and Walmart will still ship it for free within two days. The discounts will be varied though and how much you save will depend on what you purchase. Expensive items that cost more money to ship will attract the highest discounts.

The discount offer is expected to increase Walmart’s competitive edge especially against Amazon, one of its biggest rivals in this space. It will be particularly interesting to see how Amazon will match this considering they don’t actually possess any physical stores. According to Marc Lore, head of e-commerce at Walmart, the retailer has seen it fit to leverage on in their wide range of unique assets in order to help customers save money. The discount will roll out next week with over 10,000 items already eligible. Walmart is hoping that by June, it will have incorporated over 1 million products into the discount scheme. However, the discount will not apply to products that are already in store.

Source: The New York Times

Lore also added that the idea is perfect in saving shipping costs on the retailer’s end saying that shipping directly to consumer addresses requires a little bit more money compared to just shipping to any Walmart store. By avoiding direct shipping, Walmart says it will cut on costs and pass on the savings to the customer. Since last year, the retailer has been stepping up into the e-commerce space. Walmart acquired Jet.com in 2016 for $3 billion as an entry point into e-commerce and so far, things appear to be working out for the conglomerate giant just fine.

According to Lore, the discount idea is simply one of the many in the pipeline. The aim is to provide an opportunity for customers to save something every time they buy online. Lore also added that in the coming days and months, Walmart will provide more ways for customers to shop smarter online. The retailer has, in recent times, been going toe to toe with Amazon. Once the discount plan is fully implemented, it will be interesting to see how it will be received by customers and whether it will do anything to sway people who already shop at Amazon. Although considering the loyalty of the online community, it could prove difficult to consider Walmart instead.