Walmart, the world’s biggest stores retailer, is taking on Amazon, the world’s biggest online retailer, yet again. But this time the battle zone isn’t business-to-consumer ecommerce, its B2B ecommerce.
As a direct competitor to Amazon Business, the online retailer’s thriving B2B marketplace, Walmart has rolled out WalmartBusiness.com, an ecommerce site for small business and non-profit organizations.. “Our focus is to remove complexity in purchasing, lower costs and give our customers more opportunities to serve their customers and communities,” the retailer says. “Walmart Business is built to leverage the very best of Walmart — our unmatched operating scale, our proximity within 10 miles of 90% of the U.S. population and the very best of our ecommerce, fulfillment and delivery technologies.”
Walmart Business will carry an inventory of more than 100,000 items. “As we’ve spoken with customers, they have identified key product for their operations and these areas include office supplies and furniture, food and beverage, restroom, electronics, classroom and facility needs,” the retailer says. “Walmart Business simplifies restocking by grouping various items together in a way that makes sense to organizations.”
Walmart Business will also offer small businesses and non-profit groups multi-user accounts, giving organizations the ability to add up to five users to a single account. Customers can also share payment information, order history and purchasing power across teams. Qualified organizations can enroll in the Walmart Tax-Exemption Program (WTEP), allowing automatic removal of eligible taxes during checkout.
Organizations that upgrade to a Walmart Business+ membership, at a price of $98/year, plus tax, have access to additional benefits such as:
- Free shipping with no minimums
- Free pickup and delivery from store with a $35 minimum order
- Two percent rewards on orders of $250 or more
- Savings of 5% on eligible items set to subscription
“As we continue to evolve the shopping experience, we are committed to listening to SMB and nonprofit customers to help them address the challenges they face today, and the ever-changing challenges that come with running an organization.” Walmart says.
Walmart clearly sees growth in B2B ecommerce. But rival Amazon already has substantial market share.
Bank of America Securities projects that in 2022, Amazon Business will post $41.5 billion in gross merchandise volume. That would be up 31.7% from a projected $31.5 billion in 2021. Amazon Business singlehandedly would account for 31.9% of all B2B marketplaces sales, or one in every three transactions, Digital Commerce 360 estimates based on these projections.
As soon as 2025, Amazon Business could post annual gross merchandise volume of about $83.1 billion, says BofA Securities.
