Stop and think for a moment about a dominant player in the e-commerce space.
Chances are, you probably thought of Amazon (AMZN) -).
Related: Walmart introduces a game-changing feature customers will love
But several years ago, it might have been eBay (EBAY) -) that came to mind.
The digital shopping landscape is always changing, and some of the most dominant players in the space are constantly working to make sure they're gaining ground, pleasing customers, and at least attempting to beat out their peers.
Such is the case particularly for Walmart (WMT) -), which has worked tirelessly in recent years to ramp up its online fulfillment efforts using its already-in-place stores that conveniently double as massive warehouses.
Its massive stores have enabled its success for a variety of reasons. First is location; it has a store within 10 miles of 90% of the U.S. population. Having more stores closer to the last mile — wherever that may be — helps the retailer scale up its online operations effectively.
Proximity works. Its online-shopping revenue more than doubled to $64.9 billion in 2021 from $25.1 billion in 2020.
Second is a thoughtful and iterative workforce that recognizes issues as problems waiting to be solved. Walmart's efficient and thoughtful logistics team know its delivery capabilities are good, but compared to Amazon, it can still be improved. And that's precisely what they've been working on.
Walmart rolls out thoughtful and convenient solution
Earlier in 2023, Walmart had begun experimenting with in-store police substations to help ward off crime. Now, the retailer is weighing another in-store feature that helps customers as well, just with a different modality.
By the end of 2023, Walmart plans to have over 40 mini post offices to help make delivery even faster.
"As we continue growing our omnichannel fulfillment capabilities, I’m excited to share what’s next: adding parcel stations to our hubs. Parcel stations help us move goods even faster to a customer’s home by using our Private Fleet to transport more online orders," Senior Vice President of U.S. Transportation and Delivery Jennifer McKeehan wrote in a blog post. "Packages originate in our fulfillment centers and move to a sortation center or directly to stores, where they are then delivered to a customer’s home using our last-mile delivery network. In many ways you can think of a parcel station like a mini post office that receives and delivers packages."
These mini package stations should make next-day delivery more attainable, but it will also help store employees fulfill more orders as volume ramps up.
And it couldn't have come at a better time; many of the mini package stations will be operational by the holiday season. They'll begin in nine states.
In 2023, those states with mini parcel stations will be:
- Texas
- California
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Florida
- Pennsylvania
- Maryland
- New Jersey
- Connecticut
Walmart plans to expand the service into more states and regions in 2024. As it scales, the retailer expects it to drop the price of delivery, which it will "reinvest back into the customer experience."
