BENTONVILLE, AR— Eight years ago when HOMEWORLD BUSINESS® named Walmart its Retailer of the Year, the discount chain was seeing sales grow despite the U.S. economy feeling the negative effects of The Great Recession.
With unemployment at the time on the rise and those with jobs uncertain about the future pinching pennies, more consumers turned to Walmart for a variety of products ranging from groceries to housewares.
In fact, when the May 11, 2009, issue of HomeWorld featuring Walmart as Retailer of the Year was published, the discounter had just announced solid sales gains in spite of the country’s economic challenges. Sales at Walmart U.S. stores were up 5% with comparable store sales growing a steady 2.5%.
“We remain well positioned for today’s economy,” said Eduardo Castro-Wright, then-vice chairman of Walmart Stores, Inc. “People are choosing to spend money in key discretionary categories across the store, and this is translating to improvements in several areas of our business, including home.”
A key factor in driving sales of home products, including housewares, back in 2009 was the additional traffic Walmart was seeing in stores as a growing number of shoppers sought out lower prices for grocery and everyday household items.
At the time, retail analysts who spoke with HomeWorld said the big change taking place was with Walmart’s customer base. Upscale consumers who previously swore they would never to set foot in a Walmart location were now shopping the retailer in an effort to save money during the economic downturn.
While lower-priced groceries may have been Walmart’s drawing card in attracting a broader base of consumers back in 2009, well-timed placement of better quality, fashion forward home items such as the Better Homes & Gardens collection also helped sales grow.
Walmart’s expanding customer base back eight years ago was also noticeable in consumer surveys, one of which found that the retailer had at least a 30% share of shopper preference in several housewares categories including small kitchen appliances, storage and small personal appliances.
In addition, despite the tough economic times facing the country, Walmart was not looking to institute deep price reductions. Instead, the retailer used its added store traffic as continued motivation to improve design and quality on home products and expand its branded assortment.
A spokesperson for the National Retail Federation at the time said discount chains such as Walmart showed an understanding that a majority of shoppers want a good price but that many also want a good value.
