BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Walmart Inc. is piloting a new fulfillment strategy to speed up online delivery by opening “dark stores” — retail-like locations closed to the public and dedicated solely to processing digital orders.
The retail giant has quietly launched a dark store in Dallas and plans to open another in Bentonville, Arkansas, with additional sites under consideration, according to sources familiar with the matter who spoke to Bloomberg.
The initiative is part of Walmart’s ongoing push to meet growing consumer demand for faster delivery and better compete with e-commerce heavyweights like Amazon.
The dark stores are designed to stock high-demand products and function as smaller-scale fulfillment centers. By positioning inventory closer to consumers and optimizing order batching, Walmart aims to expand its delivery reach and reduce time-to-door.
The move builds on Walmart’s multi-year investment in digital transformation. After operating similar warehouses during the 2010s and early pandemic years, the company shuttered those efforts but has since refocused on automation, pharmacy delivery, and expansion into third-party marketplaces. Walmart’s fulfillment enhancements are key to its plan to make its online business profitable by the end of 2025.
Retailers across the sector have been refining last-mile strategies, often adding service fees to offset fulfillment costs. For Walmart, the new dark store model could help ease logistical bottlenecks, trim costs, and better serve the company’s growing base of online shoppers.
Walmart continues to invest in automation technologies and order optimization as it seeks to scale efficient, high-speed delivery nationwide.
