A Massive Supply Chain Is Now Expanding Its Delivery Capabilities

May 6, 2024

A massive supply chain is now expanding its delivery capabilities to handle big and bulky items, orders out of fulfillment centers and more.

Walmart GoLocal is quickly expanding its white-label, local delivery services beyond lightweight shipments from stores, VP Rina Hurst told Supply Chain Dive in an interview.

The retailer’s delivery service platform that reaches more than 18,000 ZIP codes has evolved to handle store-to-store transfers, deliveries from fulfillment centers and big and bulky orders.

For example, flower company UrbanStems is now using Walmart GoLocal to provide same-day delivery from its fulfillment centers in Dallas, Miami, Atlanta and Chicago.

Walmart GoLocal is also delivering big and bulky items for longtime client The Home Depot, Hurst said.

Walmart GoLocal is becoming more competitive versus ground shipping options from carriers like FedEx and UPS, said Hurst, the former chief business officer of Target-owned Shipt. Part of this stems from shippers become more amenable to deliveries outside of typical carrier network models.

“Retailers are getting smart about, ‘Yeah, this was ordered on our site, but it doesn’t mean we have to send it down the traditional path we used to before,’” said Hurst, who joined Walmart last year.

“There are many different ways to get packages to consumers.”

Like other FedEx and UPS alternatives, Walmart GoLocal has grown fast since its launch in 2021.

It has made 12 million deliveries over its lifetime, Hurst said.

Less than two years ago, the count was at 1 million.

The expansion of Walmart GoLocal pickup points to more than 16,000 locations is aiding that volume increase and boosting network efficiencies.

Trimming last-mile delivery costs has been a priority for Walmart of late, with the retailer making progress on that front by delivering more packages per route.

“All those new pickup points are adding so much great density into our network, which is helping us get really smart with cost,” Hurst said.

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Also Read: A Massive Grocery Brand Now Files For Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

A massive furniture store is now closing after 100 years in business with no plans to keep operations running, sources confirm.

Union Furniture Company first opened in 1912, four months after the sinking of the Titanic.

Despite shifts in ownership throughout the years, the Becker family was able to keep the store’s doors open in Macon, Georgia, just over 80 miles south of Atlanta, until recently.

Simon Becker, the grandson of the store founder and his namesake, told LOCAL CBS affiliate WMAZ that he has been with the company since 1984.

“I spent 40 years here,” Becker said.

“My father and my uncle before me, my grandfather before that.”

He revealed to the outlet that approximately nine months ago, he decided he would need to close the store.

“But I don’t have anybody following me, so it was going to happen either now or sometime in the relatively near future anyway,” Becker said.

For 112 years, the Union Furniture Company has sold couches, coffee tables, washers, and more.

Becker told the outlet that the store has had repeat customers that go back 20, 30, and even 40 years.

“We’ve had the grandchildren of people we’ve done business with, do business with,” he said.

He called the decision to close “difficult” and “very emotional”, reports The-Sun.

Becker is planning to host a closing sale at the Macon store starting on Wednesday, April 24.

Everything in store is set to be sold with discounts as high as 50% off.

Once everything is gone, Becker said the store will officially close.

He told the outlet that he and his family are grateful to the Macon community that has been their home for decades.

“So thankful to the community for everything that they’ve done for us and we’ve done for them as well,” he said.

“Providing furniture for generations of people in the Macon community.”

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Also Read: A Massive Grocery Chain With 400 Stores Is Now Closing

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