Walmart could one day have no cashiers and cater to rich urban moms, according to the tech website Recode, which reported that the big box store is turning digital in an effort to expand its base.
A Walmart startup incubator called Store No. 8 is working on what is being dubbed Project Kepler, which would have no checkout lines or cashiers, in what appears to be direct competition with the future Amazon Go Store, Recode said.
Amazon announced in December 2016 that it would soon introduce a store where customers can "grab-and-go" items without the use of checkout cashiers, through the use of technology, Ars Technica reported.
Recode also reported that new Walmart subsidiary, Code Eight, just started testing a personal shopper service in New York where customers can make purchases through texting. The website said a job listing described Code Eight's target customer as a "high net worth urban consumer."
Household items would be delivered for free within 24 hours with other purchases delivered within two business days. Returns are picked up for free at a customer's apartment building or home, Recode said.
Sources told Recode that Code Eight would become a paid-membership service but current testers are using it for free. The Code Eight job listing said the personal-shopping service is currently focused on items in “health and beauty, household essentials and apparel/accessories" categories.
The website said Project Kepler and Code Eight are signs that the big box giant is making the most of its relation with Jet.com, which Walmart purchased last year for $3.3 billion.
The Business Insider wrote in September that Jet.com built its online business catering to the urban millennial, a slightly more affluent demographic than the typical Walmart customer but one the big box store wants.
"They have been our bread and butter since the brand began," David Echegoyen, Jet's head of marketing, told Business Insider. "Think about it as continuing to serve the people who told us they favored us."
Related Stores:
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.