Report: Wal-Mart CEO says 10% of mobile orders are in-store

Bentonville, Ark.– While some retailers worry about mobile “showrooming” damaging in-store sales, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. welcomes brick-and-mortar shoppers with mobile devices. In an interview with CNBC, Wal-Mart CEO Doug McMillon said 10% of Wal-Mart’s mobile orders come from customers inside its stores.



McMillon said in-store mobile shoppers typically order items that are out-of-stock or not part of Wal-Mart’s brick-and-mortar assortment. He also said Wal-Mart’s online holiday sales broke the company’s records, with more than 1.5 billion page views on Walmart.com between Thanksgiving Day and Cyber Monday. Seventy percent of online sales came from mobile devices, and orders for same-day pickups during the five-day period grew 70% from the same period the prior year.



McMillon also said Wal-Mart fights to protect online consumer data from hackers in a “daily battle” the company takes very seriously. Moving beyond technology to the general economy, McMillon said 2-3% annual growth in the economy seems to be a “perpetual” situation. Although lower gasoline prices are helping retailers, he said healthcare bills and consumer debt are impacting customer finances. McMillon noted Wal-Mart sales tend to spike at the beginning of the month when many consumers first receive their paychecks.