Walmart directly competes with Amazon for third-party SMBs

Walmart is partnering with Shopify to open its Walmart Marketplace e-commerce marketplace to SMB sellers.

The discount giant is integrating Walmart Marketplace with Shopify, an e-commerce platform aimed at small-to-mid-sized businesses (SMBs) with over 1 million users. According to a corporate blog post announcing the partnership, Walmart will focus the Shopify collaboration on “U.S.-based small and medium businesses whose assortment complements ours and have a track record of exceeding customers’ expectations.”

Chief Walmart rival Amazon actively assists SMBs to sell on its Amazon Marketplace e-commerce platform with at least 150 targeted tools and services. Facebook has also partnered with Shopify to ease the process for SMBs to conduct third-party sales on their e-commerce, while Google purchased Irish retail start-up Pointy to help SMBs integrate products they sell into Google search results.

Calling the expansion of Walmart Marketplace a “strategic priority,” Walmart says it will start integrating new sellers now and expects to add 1,200 Shopify sellers this year. The retailer’s e-commerce business grew 74% in the first quarter of 2020, boosted by COVID-19-related demand for remote shopping.

“We’re excited to be able offer customers an expanded assortment while also giving small businesses access to the surging traffic on Walmart.com,” said said Jeff Clementz, VP, Walmart Marketplace. “Shopify powers a dynamic portfolio of third-party sellers who are interested in growing their business through new, trusted channels. This integration will allow approved Shopify sellers to seamlessly list their items on Walmart.com, which gives Walmart customers access to a broader assortment.”