The Friday Checkout is a weekly column providing more insight on the news, rounding up the announcements you may have missed and sharing what’s to come.
When Walmart launched its Walmart+ membership program in September 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing and the retailer was looking to strengthen its position in the e-commerce space, where it was playing catch-up to Amazon. But while Walmart initially described Walmart+ as a way to “save customers money and time like no other,” it couldn’t have foreseen just how handsomely the fee-based program would pay off a few years later as shoppers responded to a new concern: tariffs.
As a brewing global trade war sparked by the Trump administration’s levies on imports drives panic among shoppers and investors afraid that prices on goods sourced abroad will soar, Walmart+ has emerged as a key customer loyalty driver for the company.
In remarks at Walmart’s investment community meeting on Wednesday, Walmart U.S. CEO John Furner said online spending by Walmart+ members has increased by 50% over just the past year. Walmart+ members comprise 90% of the company’s in-store delivery volume, Furner added.
Shoppers enrolled in Walmart+ spend three times as much with the retailer as other customers and shop two times as often, CNBC reported this week. The news outlet also reported that Walmart intends to use money it is making from Walmart+ to help hold down grocery prices — yet another reminder of the influence the retailer derives from its vast reach and deep connections with shoppers.
In case you missed it
Hy-Vee cooks up changes to restaurant services
The Iowa-based grocery chain is reportedly ending bar and waitstaff service at selected stores with Market Grille locations, the Des Moines Register reported.
The stores, which include all Hy-Vee supermarkets with in-store restaurants in the Des Moines metro area, will transition to a counter-service model starting May 1. A spokesperson told the local news outlet that this change is meant to create a consistent service experience across Hy-Vee’s locations.
DoorDash delivery via robots
DoorDash and Coco Robotics are rolling out sidewalk robot delivery service from nearly 600 merchants in Chicago and Los Angeles, sister publication Restaurant Dive reported this week.
A DoorDash spokesperson said the robots will be used when they are the most efficient delivery options. Orders within a specified radius of a merchant can be automatically assigned to a robot.
Thom’s Market moseys into retirement
A three-store, Austin-based grocer is permanently closing its doors on April 20 after 18 years of business, the Austin American-Statesman reported earlier this week.
The local outlet reported that the supermarket chain’s owner, Bill Thomas, is retiring. Thomas opened Thom’s Market to honor his grandfather, who opened a grocery store in Maine when he was just a teenager.
Impulse find
Egg-cidents happen
A Walmart employee was just trying to spread some Easter cheer, only to end up faceplanting while wearing an inflatable bunny costume — and become covered in eggs.
A TikTok captured the employee skipping by the checkout lanes with three 24-count cartons of eggs. But this wholesome moment quickly soured when the bunny-dressed employee slipped and took themself and all 72 eggs down.
The witness who posted the video earlier this week on TikTok joked that this was a costly mistake by the Easter Bunny, given how expensive eggs have recently been.
@sandria_47 Not the eggs. Only at Walmart you see an Easter Bunny running with over $2000 in eggs and they slip and fall. Look at the eggs just rolling???? #funnyvideo #easteregg #easterbunny #fypツ #eggs #memestiktok #viraltiktok #comedytiktok ♬ original sound - Beautiful.People❤️
