On June 6, 2024, Reuters reported Walmart's plan for digital shelf labels in 2,300 stores by 2026 in the United States.
Lights for store tasks
Walmart's announcement described mobile-activated shelf lights for replenishment (Stock to Light) and guidance to products for online orders (Pick to Light). The retailer had tested the technology at Store 266 in Grapevine, Texas.
Earlier supplier agreement
In a separate announcement on April 27, 2023, supplier SES-imagotag described a multi-year agreement with Walmart. Its first phase envisaged 500 locations over the following twelve to eighteen months and 60 million labels. The supplier said the new platform followed more than a decade of research and development, with its first patents filed in 2013. The agreement provided an opportunity for subsequent expansion throughout Walmart's broader store network.
Equipment described in the 2023 announcement
The agreement followed their partnership one year earlier.
- Rails combining connectivity and energy supply.
- Batteryless digital labels.
- Bluetooth Low Energy interoperability with compatible devices.
The employee application's earlier launch
Walmart introduced Me@Walmart on June 3, 2021. Built in-house, the application brought together functions for store employees. Its announcement described viewing shifts up to two weeks ahead, requesting schedule changes, clocking in on arrival and push-to-talk communication between colleagues. Ask Sam supplied voice-activated questions and answers, including merchandise searches and business metrics. It had previously been available to some employees as a separate application. Walmart also planned to offer more than 740,000 employees Samsung Galaxy XCover Pro smartphones with cases and protection plans, free of charge, by the end of that year.
When prices would change
In 2024 Reuters reporting, spokesperson Cristina Rodrigues said prices were updated overnight and remained unchanged during the day. They would be reviewed after store hours or before opening.