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Walmart is shutting down a special business unit called Store No8, which it launched seven years ago to support innovation and technology investment.
The unit pitched itself as incubating “startups to help leapfrog where the customer and market will go, well into the future,” according to the Store No8 website. It also stressed that these startups were “self-contained companies,” which would benefit from Walmart’s scale while maintaining the operational speed of a smaller company.
The decision to shutter the unit stems from Walmart’s belief that innovative practices are now integrated across the company, according to spokesperson Kasey Anderson.
“When we stood up Store No8 as a separate operating unit, it was the right decision at that time,” she said. “Since then, we’ve stood up global tech, product and design organizations that work alongside the business to innovate with speed.”
Shared responsibility: Anderson added that “the responsibility to shape the future of retail is now shared by all segments, departments, and associates across the company,” and “the standalone incubation model with Store No8 is no longer needed.”
The company plans to integrate some of Store No8’s portfolio going forward, including into projects focused on developing immersive brand experiences and emerging health and wellness technology.
The announcement came two weeks after Walmart CEO Doug McMillon’s keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show, during which he emphasized that “people-led” technology investment is now a company-wide priority.
The incubator’s creation and discontinuation spans Walmart’s multiyear effort to develop its technology and e-commerce capabilities to keep pace with rivals such as Amazon. The strategy appears to have paid dividends: Walmart reported a 24% jump in e-commerce sales in Q3 2023.