Walmart.com says it is not going into the online grocery delivery business.
Last month there were reports that Wal-Mart was going to test online grocery sales by expanding its home delivery service for grocery items sold at its Sam’s Club warehouse division.
A spokeswoman for Sam’s Club also said the retailer is not in the online grocery delivery business. She did say that Sam’s Club members can order certain food items online like water or coffee and have those delivered to their home or business. She said those items are usually in bulk and are aimed at small businesses.
“There are some specialty items that are food-related that can be delivered, but it’s not geared for your weekly shopping trip,” she told Reuters.
The CEO of Wal-Mart’s Web site, Raul Vazquez said that the company has an interest in online grocery delivery. Wal-Mart is the largest seller of groceries in the U.S. and its distribution network could be valuable in supporting online grocery deliveries.
“We want to keep an eye on it because if you look at the trends, in all likelihood, it is going to be a significant business online in a few years,” he said.
Vazquez said before Wal-Mart gets into the online grocery business, it would have to know the economics of the business and the value it would bring to the company. He said it would have to work from a financial point of view.
