Walmart Express stores are 15,000 square feet, much larger than the small-format convenience-store-style stores that many supermarkets have been experimenting with, and bigger than limited-assortment
stores like dollar stores. It's also larger than Tesco's Fresh & Easy in the West.
"Comparing it to Fresh & Easy, it's much more like a traditional U.S. supermarket," said Natalie
Berg, global research director at London-based Planet Retail, and one of the first outside of Walmart to tour the store before it opened. "It's much more brand-led, and much more package-led, with a
limited offering of perishables."
Walmart says the store is designed as a convenience stop for quick trips, fill-ins and stock-ups, but Berg says with 11,000 to 12,000 SKUs, the
store, which also has a pharmacy, could easily serve for a full grocery shop. Bill Simon, CEO of Walmart U.S., said the smaller stores and another test, Walmart on Campus, "are our way of trying to
reach our customer and deliver our brand by bringing the Walmart promise to the customer instead of having the customer come to us."
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