RELATED: This One Thing Is Disappearing From 300 Walmart Stores. A leaked company memo revealed that Walmart has struggled to maintain its dominant position as the top grocery store destination over the last year, as reported by Recode in a May 7 article. The 100-page document from February—which Recode viewed, but Best Life has not seen—was created for advertising agencies vying to oversee the company’s planning and buying of advertisements. “Grocery, the growth engine of the business, is losing share rapidly,” one slide of the document allegedly read. Another slide about the retailer’s grocery business reportedly said, “Walmart is not first and preferred” in the grocery shopping space. Best Life reached out to Walmart for a comment regarding the leaked memo but did not immediately receive a response. A spokeswoman for the company declined to comment when reached by Recode. The leaked document hints that Walmart is facing the heat from competitors, both digital and brick and mortar. “More than ever, Walmart shopper[s] are choosing the competition,” one slide of the memo reportedly read. And according to Recode, the document included logos of competitors such as Publix, Target, and Albertsons and statistics showing increased customer traffic at those stores compared to a decline at Walmart. The company is also struggling in the online grocery market, where it leads thanks to its popular curbside pickup service. However, the memo said Walmart is facing stark competition from online grocery delivery service Instacart. According to Recode, prior to the pandemic, Walmart owned almost a 40 percent share of the online pickup and delivery grocery market compared to just 20 percent for Instacart. But by Feb. 2021, Walmart’s share had shrunk to just 31 percent and Instacart’s had risen to a 30 percent share, putting the neck and neck. For more up-to-date retail news, sign up for our daily newsletter. Still, a source familiar with Walmart+ told Recode that it hasn’t come without its own challenges. According to the source, the company has struggled to retain new Walmart+ members. The leaked memo also allegedly said that the company needs to improve renewal rates, as well as the rate at which free trial participants convert to paying members after their 15 free days are up. Despite these challenges, Walmart is still the world’s largest retailer, however, according to the National Retail Foundation (NRF). And there is reason for it. According to Walmart’s latest earning’s report, the company increased both revenue and profits by $35.2 billion and $40.2 billion respectively during its last fiscal year. The company also increased U.S. e-commerce sales by nearly 80 percent. However, Recode points out that many of Walmart’s competitors have also increased their revenues and profits over the last year due to COVID, which is what the company makes clear in the leaked document.ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb RELATED: If You See This at Walmart, Don’t Go Inside.
