Walmart expanding grocery pickup

Wal-Mart Stores said Wednesday that it was launching its click-and-collect grocery shopping option in eight new markets, and expanding its availability in several places where it is already available.

The Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer said free pickup will launch this month in Kansas City, Mo.; Boise, Idaho; Richmond and Virginia Beach, Va.; Austin, Texas; Provo, Utah; Daphne, Ala.; and Charleston, S.C. Service is expanding in Dallas, Houston and Atlanta, where the retailer is doubling the number of stores where the service is available, according to Michael Bender, EVP and COO, Walmart Global e-commerce.

Walmart currently has online shopping available in 23 markets.

"Customers tell us they’re excited about online grocery because they’re putting the time they’re saving back into meaningful parts of their lives (like spending time helping their kids with homework or having a date-night with their spouse)," Bender said in a blog post. "They have the option of shopping whenever and wherever they want – adding to ongoing lists all week, or placing a quick order through our mobile app – putting them in control of the entire process, all the way down to when they pick up. Even better is that our grocery pickup service is 100% free to use. We offer the same everyday low prices found in our stores, and there are no hidden fees."

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Bender said that 90% of Walmart's Grocery Pickup shoppers are repeat users, and more than 90% of online orders include fresh grocery items like dairy, produce or meat.

"That’s exciting because it means that our personal shoppers – associates who are carefully selected and highly trained to pick these foods as if they were choosing for their own families – must be working hard to get things right while strengthening the trust customers place in us to shop for them."