Walmart Opens New Florida E-Commerce Fulfillment Center To Improve Shipping
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
Center creates 1,500 jobs and is part of a greater company e-commerce strategy.
Retail giant Walmart has been aggressively doubling down on its ecommerce initiatives in an effort to boost sales and attract new customers to better compete with Amazon. Last fall, the retailer announced that it would double the number of its web-oriented warehouses to 10 by the end of 2016 and install automated product sorting and item tracking technologies to rival those of Amazon, as Retail Insights reported.
Now, as part of that push, Walmart has opened the latest in a series of massive e-commerce fulfillment centers in Davenport, FL. The 2.2 million square foot facility is located on a 50-acre campus and comprises two buildings, according to a company press release.
“This campus is just the latest example of Walmart’s commitment to offering customers fast shipping on items they need every day,” Nate Faust, senior vice president, Walmart U.S. e-Commerce Supply Chain asserted in the release. “We’re excited not only about the economic impact our facility has had, and will continue to have, in the community, but also how it will help us empower our customers to shop when and how they want.”
The new center should bring more than 1,500 jobs to Polk County, FL, and is designed to support faster fulfilling and shipping of online orders directly to customers or to stores for free pickup.
“We’re excited to welcome Walmart’s new state-of-the-art fulfillment center campus to Polk County,” said Melony Bell, Polk County Commission Chair. “Walmart has made a significant investment in our community through the more than 1,500 job opportunities created and its commitment to give back to so many deserving organizations. Walmart has long been a major employer in our community, and we’re grateful for its commitment to continued growth here.”
Among the technological innovations at the new center are a pick module system involving more than 33 miles of shelving, and dock doors which can withstand 120-mph winds. The opening of the center is part of a broader commitment to invest in Florida operations, as Walmart plans to open nine new stores across the state and remodel more than 40 store locations there by early 2018.
The opening comes at a time of growth and innovation in e-commerce for Walmart, as the company saw 63 percent growth in U.S. e-commerce sales in the first quarter of this year, the majority coming from organic growth in Walmart.com. Since just the beginning of the year, Walmart.com has rolled out free two-day shipping with no membership fees, an extra discount for picking up orders in stores and the ability to easily reorder online or make store purchases within the Walmart app. Also, the recently acquired online retailer Jet.com continues to provide a strong avenue for reaching an urban, millennial customer.
“I’m proud of the work we’re doing to keep pace with the wants and needs of our customers,” said Stephen “Toby” Gray, general manager of the Polk County fulfillment center campus and 23-year associate at Walmart. “Our team is the driving force behind this state-of-the-art facility, and our associates have worked hard to get us to where we are today. We’re also incredibly appreciative of the warm welcome and strong support we have received from the local community.”