Retailer Launches Cutting Edge Innovations throughout Maryland Stores in 2018-2019
2018 was an important year of innovation in Maryland Walmart stores, as the company made good on its promise to make shopping easier for Maryland customers, saving them time and money through the rollout and expansion of several in-store innovations. The company also supported its more than 18,000 Maryland associates through increased training,new handheld apps, robotics and other technology designed to make their daily tasks easier. Walmart will continue to lead retail innovation in 2019.
“I am proud to be part of a company who has taken a leading role in creating innovative and efficient solutions for its customers and associates,” said Jason Leisenring, Regional General Manager, Walmart. “In the New Year, my team and I are looking forward to implementing even more e-commerce developments, confirming for our customers that Walmart is the company that will lead them into the future and provide them with the best options to save time and money and live better.”
The following are a few examples of the customer-focused innovations launched or expanded in Maryland stores.
(1) Grocery Pickup and Grocery Delivery
- Our customers love our online grocery pickup option.It gives them the convenience of shopping online and the ease of quickly picking up groceries without having to leave their cars. The best part: It’s all at no additional cost.Grocery Delivery is also provingto be a hit with our customers.To use either service, customers shop online or through a mobile browser at Walmart.com/grocery.
(2) Walmart Pickup Towers
- Walmart Pickup Towers are 16 feet tall and function like high-tech vending machines, capable of fulfilling a customer’s online order in less than a minute.Simply choose from millions of items available on Walmart.com and select the “Pickup” option at checkout. When the item arrives at your local store, an associate loads it into the Pickup Tower and you will receive notification. When you arrive at the store, step up to the Pickup Tower and scan the barcode sent to your smartphone.
- Currently 4 stores across Maryland are equipped with a Pickup Tower, with additional expansion planned for 2019.
(3) Check Out with Me
- Walmart launched a new program in our Supercenters called Check Out With Me. Outfitted with cellular devices and Bluetooth printers, associates at select Marylandstores can check out customers and provide a receipt, via print, text or email, on the spot.Currently all Maryland Supercenters offer Check Out With Me.
- The Dotcom Store App allows associates to help customers shop via Walmart.com, using a handheld device, when a customer requests an item that is not available in stores or is out of stock. Customers receive either a printed ticket or email/text with a barcode that allows them to pay at any register in-store using any payment method (cash, check, credit/debit and Walmart Pay). This technology is available in all Maryland stores.
"Few think of Walmart as a company at the forefront of technology. But for years, Walmart has been making emerging technologies available to its customers, its vendors, and its workforce,” explained economist AnirbanBasu, Chairman & CEO of Sage Policy Group, Inc. “Not only has this translated into better experiences for customers, it has rendered Walmart's workforce more productive over time, which helps explain Walmart's willingness and ability to significantly increase the compensation of associates in Maryland and beyond."
Walmart continues to enable our Associates to perform their daily tasks and serve customers in faster, easier ways. Over the past year associates in Maryland have been enabled with the following new tools, behind the scenes and in the palm of their hands, to help make their jobs easier and customers experiences even better.
(5) Handheld Apps
- The company has rolled out a suite of apps available to all salesfloor associates across Maryland, placing critical information directly into the hands of those assisting customers every day. A few examples of these apps include:
- The Price Change App:product price changes are categorized by aisle so that associates receive them in the order they should be made, creating an efficient path through the store.
- The Availability App:automates information about products that are out of stock and shows the associate specifically what time the out-of-stock occurred.
- As part of the company’s commitment to training and innovation, Walmart will begin training all associates using immersive, virtual reality technology at every Walmart store in Marylandby the end of the fiscal year. This builds on the success of virtual reality training at Walmart’s nearly 200 Training Academies.
(7) Store Maps
- The Walmart app now features a store map uniquely created for each Walmart store in Maryland, helping customers quickly and easily find everything from the hottest toys to every day essentials. Just open the app in store or at home and search for the item-- the map will show the item’s exact location and new in-store signing helps customers quickly orient themselves within the store.
(8) Third-Party Returns in Stores
- Customers returning items sold by third-party sellers on Walmart.com can now drop off what they want to return at Walmart instead of having to coordinate directly with the seller. All they have to do is package the product they would like to return at home and bring it to the store where an associate will help print the return label and send the item back to the seller. All Maryland stores offer Third-Party Returns.
About Walmart in Maryland:
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, nearly 265 million customers and members visit our more than 11,200 stores under 55 banners in 27 countries and eCommerce websites.In Maryland, we serve customers at 60 retail units and online through Walmart Grocery Pickup, Walmart.com and Jet.com. We are proud to employ over 18,100 associates in Maryland. Walmart supports local businesses, spending $1.2 billion with Maryland suppliers in FY18, which supported 34,837 Maryland supplier jobs. Learn more at the Walmart Today blog, and our Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram channels.
