Walmart is ready to launch new features with its Marketplace and fulfillment services

Walmart just unveiled enhancements to its Marketplace and fulfillment services during the retailer’s seller summit last week, and Manish Joneja, senior vice president for Walmart Marketplace & Walmart Fulfillment Services, discussed the upgrades during Goldman Sachs Global Retailing Conference on Thursday. 

Walmart is adding Premium Beauty to its Marketplace online. More than 20 brands are featured in the initial assortment of skin care, hair care, and hair tool products. 

“Everything we do with respect to our expansion plans is based on customer demand,” Joneja said at the conference, according to a transcript from financial services site AlphaSense. “So what Walmart Marketplace does is it gives you the choice of making a decision that did not exist before, and that’s very important to us.”

Walmart Fulfillment Services will also soon have new features. A Multichannel Solutions program, which will be launched Sept. 10, allows sellers to use Walmart Fulfillment Services to fulfill orders from any ecommerce site via Walmart’s supply chain. The Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer claims packaging and shipping rates will be 15% lower than the competition. 

Walmart is also introducing its Walmart Cross Border import service to handle transportation of inbound goods from ports of origin in Asia directly to Walmart Fulfillment Services across the U.S. 

The retail giant also previewed Walmart LocalFinds, a platform designed to help shoppers find specific merchandise near them.It is expected to launch this fall in Atlanta and Dallas. 1-800-Flowers.com Inc., a provider of online floral and gifts, is the first nationwide seller to participate on the local platform.

“I say it’s more than a marketplace,” said Joneja. “We want our sellers to come on board, list the item, fulfill the item, and then sell the items they want to.”  

Walmart Marketplace has achieved more than 30% sales growth in each of the past four quarters, and Walmart’s ecommerce business has delivered double-digit growth for six consecutive quarters.