Walmart Expanding Test Of Wireless Stores, Adding Appliances In Select Locations

Last fall, Walmart launched a test to see how well a Walmart Wireless Shop would perform. The test launched in about 20 flagship stores. Each of the Walmart Wireless Shops is about 2,000 square feet in size. They carry a range of smartphones and cell phones and offer a variety of pre- and post-paid service plans.

Since the initial test of the Walmart Wireless Shop has gone well, Walmart is planning to expand this test to an additional 150 locations sometime this year. The Walmart Wireless Shops are typically located near the checkout, similar to other in-store services such as banking, the eyeglass center, and other store services.

In addition to expanding its Wireless Shop test, Walmart is also looking into the possibility of selling major appliances. To this end, Walmart is currently testing "The Appliance Market at Walmart" in three Texas locations. Walmart has plans to roll this test out to about 20 superstores within the Houston and Dallas/Fort Worth markets by next month.

The Appliance Market at Walmart carries about 80 good-better-best SKUs from the GE Hotpoint, GE and GE Profile brands. Additional models will be available through a catalog. The stores provide free delivery of appliances but charge for installation and hauling away any old appliances. For the most part, the Appliance Market stores will be manned by Flexi Compras.