This State Is Getting 28 Newly Remodeled Walmart Locations That Will Look Drastically Different
Walmart's 1,000-store redesign is well underway and as part of the upgrades, a new batch of stores will get a complete makeover. But it comes at a pretty high cost.
The latest revamps are for 28 stores in Wisconsin, with a $150 million price tag, according to The Appleton Post-Crescent. The news comes a few months after Walmart announced plans to invest almost $55 million in 12 stores in Virginia this year and completed a revamp in Albuquerque, N.M.
While the remodels may look slightly different from store to store, the new Walmarts will feature a mobile app to help guide customers in the store, digital displays with interactive elements like QR codes, new self-checkout kiosks, and new bolder signage. The store's general layout also has a more user-friendly design, which customers have reported as making them easier to navigate.
The first store to open was Walmart's "incubator" location, which is in Springdale, Ark, and was unveiled in January as part of the initial launch of the renovation plan. The premier store was dubbed "Time Well Spent," and encompasses how Walmart envisions the remodels to improve customers' experiences when shopping.
The Wisconsin plan also includes supercenters in the areas of Appleton, Oshkosh, Fond du Lac, Manitowoc, and Sheboygan. A few, including the Appleton location and ten others, are already hosting their re-opening ceremonies—indicating Walmart isn't dragging its feet on the redesign plan.
However, even if your store hasn't been selected for a remodel yet, you might want to swing by your local Walmart. Right now the deals are better than ever as there's significant excess in surplus of merchandise that it's trying to get rid of. Currently, the CEO of its U.S. division, John Furner, said that there was about 20% of inventory that "if you could just wish [it] away and make it disappear, you would."