The news: Walmart’s GoLocal delivery solution and Store Assist local fulfillment app will be made available to Salesforce clients, per a press release, as the big-box retailer steps up its challenge to Amazon.
How it works: Like Amazon and a number of other retailers, including Target and American Eagle, Walmart has begun offering the tools it uses to support its own retail business to other companies as an additional revenue stream.
Partnering with Salesforce puts Walmart’s solutions in front of a larger pool of potential clients, maximizing the revenue-generating opportunity. The offering allows Walmart to deepen its understanding of what customers are looking for throughout the customer journey, and improve the overall experience, the company's global chief technology officer Suresh Kumar told CNBC.
Taking on Amazon: The partnership with Salesforce allows Walmart to position itself as an alternative to Amazon’s newly expanded Buy with Prime offering, chipping away at the ecommerce giant’s competitive advantage. And after years of struggling to prevent Amazon from taking market share, the big-box retailer is finally in a position to strike back.
Our take: While Walmart has often found itself playing catch-up with Amazon, it now has an unprecedented opportunity to level the playing field as the latter’s new focus on profitability creates an opening for Walmart to drive retail innovation.
Go further: For more on Walmart’s growth prospects, check out our Power of Walmart report.
This article originally appeared in Insider Intelligence's Retail & Ecommerce Briefing—a daily recap of top stories reshaping the retail industry. Subscribe to have more hard-hitting takeaways delivered to your inbox daily.