Walmart vs. Amazon

As they say, business it business. But it sure seems like Walmart has an axe to grind with Amazon! Last month, Wally announced they were no longer carrying Amazon’s Kindle. Now, they are going to compete with Amazon’s experimental same-day delivery.

Called Wal-Mart To Go, the service costs $10 regardless of the size of the order. The products will be shipped from the company’s stores, not from a warehouse or distribution center. Wal-Mart began testing the same-day service last week in Philadelphia and northern Virginia. It added Minneapolis on Tuesday and will add San Jose and San Francisco later this month. The trial will last through the holidays. Wall Street Journal

Amazon has been doing the same-day thing in 10 cities for a few years now. Amazon has about $35 billion in online sales each year, about 7 times Walmart’s take. BUT, Wally’s $5 billion is about 1% of their total sales. So, that kind of capital allows them to experiment to find ways to compete with the established leader Amazon.

Analysts say that Walmart is going to need that cash flow to make it work…

 “It can be three to four times the cost for the retailer to pick items and pack them from a store versus having a really efficient, automated process back in a distribution center.”  Wall Street Journal

So, what do you think? Does this sound like a good move for Wally? Or should they stick to what they know best and leave the online fulfillment game to the recognized leaders? Read the article, and have a great weekend!

4 thoughts on “Walmart vs. Amazon”

  1. There’s no way that Walmart can compete with Amazon. First they do not carry the quality or amount of inventory that Amazon does. It reminds me of Coke vs Pepsi. I was a waitress in my youth and 9 out of 10 times customers would ask for a coke when they really just wanted a cola. Same thing if you want something ship first thing people say is Amazon. However if by some miracle they come close it will take years before Amazon would have anything to worry about.

  2. amazon is # 1 online store !!!u can find super dvds. at reasonable prices. well they have everything u could want to buy !

  3. walmart is nothing more than a glorified thrift store these days they have strayed from what sam’s ethics were when he built the empire .now they treat their employees like crap and they sell junk . we buy amazon . they actually care about there customers and you can get high quality merchandise on the site . they are also great about returns and carry very good warranties
    many people are catching on to walmarts ethics and i see people looking at other places to shop mre all the time . they are not as impressive as they once were

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