A decade after Amazon launched Prime, its signature membership and free shipping program, Walmart has a rebuttal ready: unlimited shipping for half the price.
Walmart said Wednesday that it will begin limited tests of a subscription shipping program for online shoppers. Those who sign up for the $50 annual service will get unlimited free three-day shipping on more than 1 million of Walmart’s top-selling items, with no minimum purchase required.
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Walmart says it will start testing the service on an invite-only basis in a limited number of markets later this summer. Ravi Jariwala, a company spokesman, declined to provide details on which markets in particular, or exactly how many. Walmart is also not sharing details on how it plans to fill the online orders or who will deliver them, but Jariwala added that Walmart works with “a number of different carriers.”
When it comes to all things digital, Walmart knows it needs to do better to keep up with the likes of Amazon, and last fall it announced plans to accelerate investments in e-commerce. The company said it would spend between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion on those online efforts this year—a big increase from last year’s $1 billion. In a sign of how the retail market is swinging, Walmart added that it would continue building new fulfillment centers to speed up delivery for online orders, but offset increased e-commerce costs by adding fewer square feet to its physical stores.
Walmart currently offers a grocery delivery service in five markets, including Phoenix and Huntsville, Alabama. The company also has a “site to store” program that lets customers place orders online and then pick them up for free at a local store. Walmart says that a third of its online orders “somehow touch the store,” meaning the merchandise is either picked up directly at a store, or shipped to customers from a store rather than one of the company’s fulfillment centers.
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While Walmart’s new delivery service will be available for half the price of Amazon Prime, which costs $99 a year, that alone seems unlikely to convince Prime patrons to switch allegiances. For starters, three-day shipping is slower than the standard two-day delivery—and, in select markets and items, two-hour delivery—that Prime provides. Walmart’s 1 million eligible items also likely won’t compete with the estimated 20 million things available on Prime. Then there’s the fact that Amazon Prime now offers many more perks than just delivery—streaming music, streaming movies, and access to the Kindle library, to name a few.
But it’s also possible that Walmart’s shipping service isn’t really trying to go head to head with Amazon’s. At $50, it’s substantially cheaper, so it makes sense that it would offer much less that Prime. At the same time, Jariwala says the eligible items will include most basic consumables (things like toilet paper and soap and paper towels). If you assume, as Amazon has seemed to, that many people sign up for delivery services largely to keep those everyday necessities in stock, then Walmart’s $50 shipping subscription starts to look pretty good. You might not be able to get a horse-head mask delivered in two days, but if your main focus is replenishing essentials, why not try the cheaper service instead?
Alison Griswold is a Slate staff writer covering business and economics
Hmm...I shop at Walmart all the time. But, I live in a small town so our Walmart is like 20 miles away. I have to go to a neighboring town. I used to buy a ton of stuff on Amazon when I had Prime. I got my original prime membership for like $59. I think $99 is just too steep. I dont' care about the Amazon free movies and crap. I just want cheap, convenient shipping. Shopping online at Walmart makes sense. That is something I would definitely consider.
I shop online at Walmart sometimes, and I've never paid for shipping. It's either been free or I could ship it to the store for free, which is right down the road.
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In parts and pieces. She got a few tops, they came in a bag. She ordered panties at the same time, they came in a box big enough to hold everything she ordered. Still waiting on the sandles.
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I love Amazon. We have the Echo, and they just now programmed it so I can just tell it to buy dog food, it searches my order history, confirms the item and places the order!
I've only ordered once from Walmart on line. I got a tower fan that I really like & it shipped free & was there almost over night. I haven't needed to buy anything else from them. I was very happy with that purchase though.
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
Yeah, avoid them on weekends, it's crazy. I joined when I was pregnant so I could buy diapers and formula in bulk. I bought a few frozen meals, too, because I knew it would be difficult to cook. They have wonderful steaks, and we would buy chicken, hotdogs & meat in bulk. It's good quality and cheap. But the freezer only has so much room, and we really don't need to stock up anymore.
You are right about the steaks. They are really good quality. My mom always buys her standing rib roast there for Christmas dinner. And it is always a beautiful cut of meat. I also love their seafood rodeo when they have it. That was actually the last purchase I made there. I wish they would let you pay for the seafood at the stand instead of having to go to the register.
Huge crab legs. Very good. They are so big I can usually only eat two if that. They have giant shrimp & other stuff too. I just go for the crab legs. It is usually holiday weekends (crowds) & one weekend a month.
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
flan
LOL, there are sections I have never visited. I always stuck to the food or sometimes the bath towels.
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
flan
LOL, there are sections I have never visited. I always stuck to the food or sometimes the bath towels.
I liked the books & sometimes the clothes.
I swear, after 20 minutes, I had NO idea where the door was!
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
flan
LOL, there are sections I have never visited. I always stuck to the food or sometimes the bath towels.
I liked the books & sometimes the clothes.
I swear, after 20 minutes, I had NO idea where the door was!
flan
Oddly enough I rarely bought books at Costco. I think the B&N $5 table was still cheaper.
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
flan
LOL, there are sections I have never visited. I always stuck to the food or sometimes the bath towels.
I liked the books & sometimes the clothes.
I swear, after 20 minutes, I had NO idea where the door was!
flan
You need to take a long a compass. GPS won't work inside the building.
Ask for a map at customer service. Maybe they would lend you a guide dog?
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I'll keep my Prime membership. I use it regularly enough with the shipping, movies, music and books. I won't use the Echo (or whatever the auto order thing is) since I still want to price shop.
If I want something from Wally world, I'll drive there. There are four, no, five within a 10-15 minute drive, two fo which are SuperWallys.
Costco is okay, I've only been to check it out once. If one was convenient, I'd join. I have Sam's and BJ's. They are closer to my house and not out of the way like Costco.
If I shopped by who did what either politically or ethically, I'd probably starve to death, naked and homeless. Nestle, Kraft, RJ Reynolds and many more have done so many unethically things, especially in third world countries, or have practices I disagree with. Just like the don't pump gas on a certain day because of an oil embargo that happened. I still need gas, they are still going to make a profit. I do try to choose selectively but sometimes it's not possible.
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
flan
LOL, there are sections I have never visited. I always stuck to the food or sometimes the bath towels.
I liked the books & sometimes the clothes.
I swear, after 20 minutes, I had NO idea where the door was!
I have a Costco membership through work but haven't shopped there in probably 5 years. People who live alone really don't need to shop in bulk. Plus those big warehouse store make me claustrophobic.
DH joined Costco for a few years. I swear, every single time I would go with him, I'd get lost!
flan
LOL, there are sections I have never visited. I always stuck to the food or sometimes the bath towels.
I liked the books & sometimes the clothes.
I swear, after 20 minutes, I had NO idea where the door was!
flan
Well, then you should steer well clear of IKEA!
I think Ikea hides the door on purpose. It is such a maze to get thru there. But I have figured out where the short cuts are at the one I go to. I go in, have lunch, get what I want and get out. I refuse to go on weekends or Tuesdays (kids eat free day).
I've been to IKea once. I thought their stuff looked cheap. Didn't know they sold food!
Some of their stuff is cheap. Some is pretty decent quality. They are more than just furniture. They have a lot of household stuff, kitchenware, and textiles.
I get their tealights, good deal, 100 for $3.99. I have some kitchen stuff and a rug. I have a wardrobe from there that's still in great shape, it's solid and hold almost all my clothes. I have two of these three drawer dressers, one I varnished and is in the bathroom, one I covered in contact paper.
Is it fine furniture? No. Does it work? Absolutely.
Oh, and they do have some packaged food. I go to the restaurant for the Swedish meatballs. They have good roasted chicken and salmon too. They are supposed to be remodeling ours soon. It was the first one in the US.
-- Edited by jlbear71 on Saturday 16th of May 2015 02:25:26 PM
We shop at Walmart frequently. I like their site to store option. I loathe the parking lot at the Walmart nearest us though. Most of the aisles are one way only and there's too many idiots who refuse to obey the direction of the aisle.
We go to Costco about twice per month. They have salad mix for a decent price - huge tub for about $4. We also like sample shopping as it gives us ideas for meals. I wish they sold Pampers instead of Huggies so we could get diapers there.
We go to IKEA infrequently. My hip rarely can tolerate walking for such a long time but when it's not acting up, it's a fun store to go waste a couple hours in. I love their food but I don't think DH has ever had it. I still have a night stand from IKEA that is over 10 years old and looks fairly new.
This is an interesting idea. I had actually never considered on-line shopping Walmart, because there's a "supercenter" in every town I've ever been in, in the last 15 years.
I wonder how their prices and selection compare to that of Amazon.
I have an Ikea 10 minutes from me. It's a fun place to waste time. I love their bedding - that is where most of my money goes. And their kitchen stuff. I have some great coffee mug sets.
Most of my odds and ends furniture is from there. It's not high end, but it does the trick and is relatively affordable. Although, I've noticed that the prices have gone up in the last few years.
This is an interesting idea. I had actually never considered on-line shopping Walmart, because there's a "supercenter" in every town I've ever been in, in the last 15 years.
I wonder how their prices and selection compare to that of Amazon.
Yes, I went ahead and signed up to be notified when it is starting. Walmart Online will have tons of stuff available including furniture and all kinds of items you don't find locally, even in a big box store. So, I am will to give it a go as I really like home delivery and Amazon Prime is too expensive. Amazon should separate the shipping club form the movies/online streaming thing. I don't want the movies, I just want shipping.
It's been years since I spent more than $5 at Walmart. I only go in if I need something after normal hours, since they are open 24/7. As a rule, I don't shop there. The stores are filthy, their food safety practices are abhorrent, and everyone who works there is miserable and mean. I hired several ex Walmart employees in my time at Target and they told me some pretty terrible stories about how they were abused there.
Food safety wise for anyone who cares:
the power went out because of a bad storm about 4 years ago. The city had no power for 2 days. Even though the power was out, we had to go to work and throw out all the refrigerated food. We waited until the temp in the refrigerator went down below the safe temp, and then began pitching it all. Scanned it out of the system, and tossed it into huge dumpsters. It was over $55,000 worth of food. Walmart didn't throw out anything. They just shut their doors and reopened 2 DAYS later. I asked one of their employees who was shopping at our store if they had finished throwing out all the spoiled food. She said she worked in the grocery dept and they didn't toss a single item. I asked if they had a generator. She said no. She had asked management about tossing the food and they basically told her they would deal with it if and when anyone got sick. Their attitude is they are Walmart and they have deep enough pockets to pay off anyone who has a problem. Disgusting.
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Out of all the lies I have told, "just kidding" is my favorite !
It's been years since I spent more than $5 at Walmart. I only go in if I need something after normal hours, since they are open 24/7. As a rule, I don't shop there. The stores are filthy, their food safety practices are abhorrent, and everyone who works there is miserable and mean. I hired several ex Walmart employees in my time at Target and they told me some pretty terrible stories about how they were abused there.
Food safety wise for anyone who cares:
the power went out because of a bad storm about 4 years ago. The city had no power for 2 days. Even though the power was out, we had to go to work and throw out all the refrigerated food. We waited until the temp in the refrigerator went down below the safe temp, and then began pitching it all. Scanned it out of the system, and tossed it into huge dumpsters. It was over $55,000 worth of food. Walmart didn't throw out anything. They just shut their doors and reopened 2 DAYS later. I asked one of their employees who was shopping at our store if they had finished throwing out all the spoiled food. She said she worked in the grocery dept and they didn't toss a single item. I asked if they had a generator. She said no. She had asked management about tossing the food and they basically told her they would deal with it if and when anyone got sick. Their attitude is they are Walmart and they have deep enough pockets to pay off anyone who has a problem. Disgusting.
And, you believe that doesnt' happen at mom and pop grocery stores? Or other grocery chains?
Well I know for a fact that it happens there. When I find out for a fact it happens at other places, I won't risk eating their food and getting sick there either. I can only deal with the info I have. And this info was hand delivered to me. I didn't seek it out.
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Out of all the lies I have told, "just kidding" is my favorite !
Well I know for a fact that it happens there. When I find out for a fact it happens at other places, I won't risk eating their food and getting sick there either. I can only deal with the info I have. And this info was hand delivered to me. I didn't seek it out.
Gosh MM, I guess it depends on the area that you live in.
The Walmart stores that are near my neighborhood are nice and clean, and well stocked.
The employees are friendly and helpful.
The folks who shop there, look nothing like the People of Walmart site.
It's been years since I spent more than $5 at Walmart. I only go in if I need something after normal hours, since they are open 24/7. As a rule, I don't shop there. The stores are filthy, their food safety practices are abhorrent, and everyone who works there is miserable and mean. I hired several ex Walmart employees in my time at Target and they told me some pretty terrible stories about how they were abused there.
Food safety wise for anyone who cares:
the power went out because of a bad storm about 4 years ago. The city had no power for 2 days. Even though the power was out, we had to go to work and throw out all the refrigerated food. We waited until the temp in the refrigerator went down below the safe temp, and then began pitching it all. Scanned it out of the system, and tossed it into huge dumpsters. It was over $55,000 worth of food. Walmart didn't throw out anything. They just shut their doors and reopened 2 DAYS later. I asked one of their employees who was shopping at our store if they had finished throwing out all the spoiled food. She said she worked in the grocery dept and they didn't toss a single item. I asked if they had a generator. She said no. She had asked management about tossing the food and they basically told her they would deal with it if and when anyone got sick. Their attitude is they are Walmart and they have deep enough pockets to pay off anyone who has a problem. Disgusting.
This has been my experience as well. I have four walmarts very close and they are all dirty, unkempt, terrible service, rude shoppers. No decent selections. I go there if I feel like waiting in the checkout line for an hour. Which is never.
-- Edited by VetteGirl on Tuesday 19th of May 2015 02:47:33 PM
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Was it a bad day?
Or was it a bad five minutes that you milked all day?
Well I know for a fact that it happens there. When I find out for a fact it happens at other places, I won't risk eating their food and getting sick there either. I can only deal with the info I have. And this info was hand delivered to me. I didn't seek it out.
Gosh MM, I guess it depends on the area that you live in.
The Walmart stores that are near my neighborhood are nice and clean, and well stocked.
The employees are friendly and helpful.
The folks who shop there, look nothing like the People of Walmart site.
I shop in Walmart all the time.
I've never run into a problem.
(Maybe my area is just odd!)
We have two Walmarts here. One is just meh. The newer one was built near more affluent neighborhoods. My mom loves that store. She says it is clean & friendly & she runs into people she knows there. The canned cat food is also 5 cents a can cheaper than at Petsmart. I've never been because Target is closer to my house.
Well I know for a fact that it happens there. When I find out for a fact it happens at other places, I won't risk eating their food and getting sick there either. I can only deal with the info I have. And this info was hand delivered to me. I didn't seek it out.
Gosh MM, I guess it depends on the area that you live in.
The Walmart stores that are near my neighborhood are nice and clean, and well stocked.
The employees are friendly and helpful.
The folks who shop there, look nothing like the People of Walmart site.
I shop in Walmart all the time.
I've never run into a problem.
(Maybe my area is just odd!)
We have three pretty close to us. The one closest to us nice and clean. For the most part the people that work there are nice and helpful. The other two are in less than nice neighborhoods so they are much dirtier and run down.
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