wall-e-world

hey there friends,

today, we're diving deep into the belly of a retail beast.

the most efficient, streamlined, profit-churning retail machine — walmart.

they’ve dominated retail for decades, but let me tell you, their secret isn’t just low prices. it’s the invisible gears that make wall-e-word run like clockwork,

processes.

this is the final leg of our profiTABLE store series deep dive. from signs to inventory management to logistics to customer service protocols, walmart has always been at the forefront of innovation in this area.

so, let’s grab our shopping carts & roll through the retailer that loves to rollback savings!

customer & costs credo

if you ever wondered how walmart became, well… walmart, it’s all laid out in the founder’s autobiography “sam walton: made in america.”

i’ll be the first to admit that before reading this book, i thought walmart was more of a villain than a visionary. but hearing the journey straight from sam walton, i’ve gained a whole new respect for the evolution of this business.

the journey from owning one single franchise dime store in newport, arkansas to becoming the largest retailer in the world is insanely impressive (& entertaining!)

from the get-go, sam prioritized making the customer happy. he famously said:

i think we all know that sam wasn’t just about feel-good customer service… he coupled this with a ruthless determination to find efficiencies to slash costs. he knew that in retail, efficiency is the key to keeping prices low and competitive.

& it worked. walmart’s ability to balance these two philosophies—taking care of customers & tightening the belt on expenses—helped them build one of the most successful process-driven companies in history.

even more impressive given the margins of this industry.

scaling through systems

walmart didn’t invent what they sold—but they perfected how they sold.

here are their greatest hits in process innovation:

• 🏷️ everyday low prices (1970s): forget sales promo cycles & confusing coupons. walmart made "always cheap" their mantra.

• 🖥️ computerized pos systems (1970s): real-time inventory tracking when cash registers were still king.

• 🛞 hub & spoke distribution (1970s): central warehouses feeding nearby stores like a well-oiled machine.

• 🚚 private truckin’ (1970s): walmart cut down on third-party logistics by owning & operating their own private truck fleets.

• 🚛 cross-docking (1970s): incoming goods are transferred directly to outbound trucks, with little to no storage time in between.

• 🛰️ satellite network (1980s): first company to fully grasp the power of satellite systems to connect all stores & data realtime.

• 📦 vendor-managed inventory (1980s): aka vmi. walmart told suppliers, "you stock it, we'll sell it." revolutionary!

• 📟 rfid revolution (2000s): walmart mandated rfid use by suppliers before the iphone existed. these tiny chips made a big impact on inventory tracking.

we can thank walmart for making each these innovations more mainstream & so common that now we take them for granted.

last mile, first place

icymi last-mile delivery is the final frontier of retail.

walmart is gearing up to own it.

the fact that 90% of americans living within 10 miles of a walmart gives ‘em a serious head start in the race to your doorstep. but instead of relying on proximity alone, they’re pushing hard into tech too:

• 🤖 robo-revolution: teaming up with symbotic to automate 42 distribution centers by 2025, boosting efficiency by at least 25%.

•  🛸 drone domination: with the help of on-demand drone delivery providers, right now 75% of the dfw population can be served in < 30 mins.

• 🏪 micro-fulfillment: expect more space in stores dedicated to their proprietary storage & retrieval system named alphabot.

seeing these investments makes me see a future where we’ll be seeing fewer amazon prime boxes on doorsteps — & a lot more walmart trucks (& drones!).

next time you spot a walmart truck, store, or even a drone, remember wall-e-world isn’t just rolling back prices, they’re rolling out the future of retail delivery.

p.s. ok, tell me i’m not the only one who didn’t know what ohio means? this walmart ad schooled me while making me cringe.

p.p.s. if you work in the world of retail, will you pretty please reply to this email sharing where you work & what you do. i’m cooking up somethin special for you!

p.p.p.s if you’re feeling generous, will you show your support for this newsletter by clicking the link below to learn about today’s sponsor, growth school 👇️