After introducing plans to streamline company operations, downsizing from six divisions to four, Walmart has announced that it plans to build a new Home Office in its hometown of Bentonville, AR. The news comes on the heels of Amazon’s recent attempts to locate a second headquarters by soliciting proposals from cities across the United States.
Walmart's current home office is in Bentonville, though it has grown considerably since Sam Walton first established it in the 1970s.
“As we grew in the years that followed, so did our Home Office footprint, but without a holistic long-term plan,” CEO Doug McMillon noted in a statement. “The result was today’s patchwork of more than 20 buildings in Northwest Arkansas. Many of these facilities, including the current Home Office, are significantly beyond their shelf-life. They are expensive and inefficient to maintain, costing millions of dollars of accelerating upkeep every year. And because they are so dispersed, they literally encourage us to work in silos and cause us to waste time and energy traveling between locations, many of which have inadequate parking options.”
In a media packet, the company estimated that the project will take between five and seven years to complete. Much planning needs to be done before the groundbreaking, and there is no current estimated cost, as the project will be completed in phases and worked into the annual budgeting process.
“We intend to bring most of our Home Office associates in Northwest Arkansas onto a central campus with accommodations for a more digitally native workforce and space that encourages greater collaboration and speed,” McMillon added.
Deli Market News will continue to report as this important retailer streamlines its structure and aims to grow in an uncertain retail landscape.
