Press release

Walmart Plans Estimated $83 Million in Pennsylvania Store Improvements and Innovations in 2019

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Building on its commitment to save customers time and money in new ways,
Walmart expects to spend an estimated $83 million this year in
Pennsylvania through the remodeling of 15 stores, as well as the launch
and continued expansion of several customer-focused innovations.

“Pennsylvania Walmart stores continue to evolve to best meet the
preferences of our valued customers and the more than 53,000 associates
who serve as the heart of our efforts to exceed customer expectations,”
said Ann-Louise Almeida, Walmart Regional Manager for Pennsylvania. “The
exciting recent innovations we’ve seen in Pennsylvania include online
grocery pickup and grocery delivery at more than 50 stores statewide,
providing a number of easy ways for customers to shop for essential
items online, while never having to leave their vehicles. Additionally,
more than 30 Pickup Towers across Pennsylvania and customer-friendly
services such “Check Out with Me” have made it easier than ever for
shoppers to save not only money, but valuable time as well.

“Combined with skills-based training support for associates, including
the use of virtual reality to simulate real-world scenarios, Walmart is
redefining the retail experience for all Pennsylvania customers and
creating a one-of-a-kind shopping experience that helps our customers
live better by providing unmatched value and industry-leading
convenience.”

2019 Walmart Remodels in Pennsylvania

Walmart plans to remodel stores in the following locations:

Remodels

  • 2600 Plank Road Commons, Altoona
  • 567 Route 100 N., Bechtelsville
  • 50 Foster Brook Blvd., Bradford
  • 100 Supercenter Dr., Clearfield
  • 300 Walmart Dr., Ebensburg
  • 1825 Downs Dr., Erie
  • 1800 Tilden Ridge, Hamburg
  • 495 Eisenhower Dr., Hanover
  • 5741 Buffalo Rd., Harborcreek
  • 6535 Grayson Rd., Harrisburg
  • 167 Hogan Blvd., Mill Hall
  • 1675 S. Christopher Columbus Blvd., Philadelphia
  • 9745 Roosevelt Blvd., Suite A, Philadelphia
  • 195 N. West End Blvd., Quakertown
  • 1102 Million Dollar Highway, Saint Mary’s

2019 Walmart Innovations in Pennsylvania

Walmart will continue
to innovate
to help customers save time and money by creating a
seamless shopping experience that gives them the options to shop when,
where and how they want. The following are examples of the
customer-focused innovations that will be expanded this year in
Pennsylvania.

(1) Grocery Pickup

  • Busy customers love Walmart’s 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. Walmart
    plans to expand the popular program to more than 43 stores across the
    state by the end of the year.
    The company also recently introduced
    Walmart Voice Order, which allows customers to simply say “Hey Google,
    talk to Walmart” and the Google Assistant will add items directly to
    their Walmart Grocery cart.

(2) Grocery Delivery

  • Walmart’s convenient
    grocery delivery service
    is also proving to be a hit with
    customers. This year, Walmart plans to add the service to 34
    stores, increasing its coverage area in the state.

(3) Walmart Pickup Towers

  • Walmart
    Pickup Towers
    are 16-feet tall, high-tech vending machines capable
    of fulfilling a customer’s online order in less than a minute once
    they arrive at the store. It’s easy to do — once the order is ready, step
    up to the Pickup Tower
    and scan the barcode sent to your
    smartphone to retrieve your item. This year, Walmart plans to add
    23 Pickup Towers to stores across the state.

(4) FAST Unloader

  • Today, product is unloaded as it arrives at the store through a
    complex, highly manual process that has seen little innovation over
    the last 50 years – until now. A
    new system in Walmart backrooms
    – known as FAST – automatically
    scans and sorts items that come off trucks based on priority and
    department, allowing associates to spend less time unloading in the
    backroom and more time on the sales floor with customers. This
    year, Walmart plans to expand the technology to 45 stores across the
    state.

(5) Autonomous Floor Scrubber

  • The autonomous
    floor scrubber
    uses assisted autonomy technology to perform the
    task of cleaning and scrubbing the concrete floors in stores. The
    company plans to expand the technology to 41 stores across the state
    this year.

Background and Context

  • Capital and Innovation Expenditure: The estimated spend in the
    state this fiscal year (Feb. 1, 2019 – Jan. 31, 2020) is a portion of
    Walmart’s total capital expenditure guidance of approximately $11.0
    billion for Fiscal Year 2020, which was outlined last October at the
    company’s annual meeting for the investment community and reiterated
    in February 2019.
  • National Innovation Expansion Strategy: Nationwide this fiscal
    year Walmart plans to add an additional 1,200 autonomous floor
    scrubbers, 300 autonomous shelf-scanners, 1,200 FAST unloaders and 900
    Pickup Towers to stores across the country. Also, the company plans to
    expand Online Grocery Pickup to an additional 1,000 stores and add
    another 800 stores across the country to the retailer’s Grocery
    Delivery footprint.

About Walmart in Pennsylvania

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. In Pennsylvania we serve customers at 161
retail units and online through
Walmart
Online Grocery
, http://Walmart.com
and our
family
of brands
. We are proud to employ more than 53,900 associates
in Pennsylvania. Walmart supports local businesses, spending $11.2
billion with Pennsylvania suppliers in FYE 2018 and supporting more than
131,500 Pennsylvania supplier jobs. Walmart continues to be a leader in
employment opportunity, sustainability, and corporate philanthropy. In
FY 18, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation contributed more than $32.7
million in cash and in-kind donations to local nonprofits in
Pennsylvania and our Pennsylvania associates volunteered more than
46,890 hours with local causes. Additional information about Walmart can
be found by visiting our
corporate
website
and our Instagram,
Facebook
and
Twitter
channels.

(*Editor’s Note: The photos above, and video, are available for
download
here.)