Walmart unveils larger Neighborhood Market concept

Bentonville, AR-based Walmart Stores Inc. BB #:143789 is undertaking remodel of about 150 of its small format Neighborhood Market concept, focused on enlarging and enhancing fresh categories.

According to a blog post authored by Kyle Kinnard, senior vice president, Neighborhood Markets, Walmart US, a new vision for the concept was unveiled at stores in Florida and Georgia.

“The stores aren’t just new or remodeled,” Kinnard wrote in the post. “They’re also bigger. With 57,000 square feet of salesfloor and pickup and delivery space, the Dune Lakes and Vince City stores will have a footprint that’s about 17,000 square feet larger than the average Neighborhood Market.”

The expanded space, he said, will allow Walmart to “sharpen our focus on value, speed, and convenience.”

The new size isn’t set in stone, Kinnard wrote, as the company plans to be “thoughtful about how to make our Neighborhood Markets right-sized for each community.”

Changes are focused on expanding assortment, with more emphasis on fresh foods.

“Consumers will be the biggest gains in our fresh departments,” Kinnard wrote. “There will be more to choose from in bakery, produce, meat, and dairy.”

Read the full post here.