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I was not suggesting that Walmart compete in home delivery, I was thinking that they should ship things to their store (which as you mentioned they already have

by dm2 12y ago

I was not suggesting that Walmart compete in home delivery, I was thinking that they should ship things to their store (which as you mentioned they already have that system in place) where it would be boxed up and ready for pickup by customers (because everyone has a walmart fairly close to them, and that's a huge advantage). The cost to them would be minimal and the customers they would gain that have been using online shopping with shipping to their homes could be significant. Even for a small surcharge it would be worth it to me.

cwyers 12y ago
They already offer that. http://www.walmart.com/cp/Site-to-Store/538452 http://www.walmart.com/cp/Site-to-Store/538452
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
eclipxe 12y ago
>The cost to them would be minimal and the customers they would gain that have been using online shopping with shipping to their homes could be significant. This does not compute. They already have ship-to-store, and have had for quite a while. It hasn't made a significant impact on their online power. Customers don't want to drive to a Walmart to pickup their online order. That's an extra step for no reason.
- dm2 12y ago
  See this comment about the site-to-store please: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8028352 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8028352 For driving it really depends on the city and the persons situation. Many people drive by a walmart on their commute, the ability to order something in the morning then pick it up on the way home would be convenient. For businesses someone could order something the night before and pick it up in the morning and use it at work that day, that would be very valuable.
- cpwright 12y ago
  Site-to-store does indeed solve a problem. If there is something I want at Wal-Mart, then I have to find it. Not only that, after finding it I need to stand on a long check-out line. With site-to-store, I get it on the web site, then just go to the back of the store and pick it up. The problem is that at Wal-Mart it can be a crap shoot as to whether the site-to-store place is properly staffed. I actually use the Home Depot site-to-store equivalent much more than the Wal-Mart one [probably several times a month, vs. once or twice a year]. Home Depot gets it right. There are still occasional problems, and it would be better if they could fulfill the orders faster, but it still avoids having to search for stuff, which I consider to be of significant value.
philwelch 12y ago
Everyone has a Wal-Mart fairly close to them? I think more people have the ability to reliably receive UPS deliveries than have a Wal-Mart close to them. Who wants to drive into the suburbs to buy stuff? Plus, Amazon lockers.

by dm2 12y ago

cwyers 12y ago

They already offer that. http://www.walmart.com/cp/Site-to-Store/538452 http://www.walmart.com/cp/Site-to-Store/538452

deleted 12y ago
[deleted]

eclipxe 12y ago

>The cost to them would be minimal and the customers they would gain that have been using online shopping with shipping to their homes could be significant. This does not compute. They already have ship-to-store, and have had for quite a while. It hasn't made a significant impact on their online power. Customers don't want to drive to a Walmart to pickup their online order. That's an extra step for no reason.

dm2 12y ago
See this comment about the site-to-store please: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8028352 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8028352 For driving it really depends on the city and the persons situation. Many people drive by a walmart on their commute, the ability to order something in the morning then pick it up on the way home would be convenient. For businesses someone could order something the night before and pick it up in the morning and use it at work that day, that would be very valuable.
cpwright 12y ago
Site-to-store does indeed solve a problem. If there is something I want at Wal-Mart, then I have to find it. Not only that, after finding it I need to stand on a long check-out line. With site-to-store, I get it on the web site, then just go to the back of the store and pick it up. The problem is that at Wal-Mart it can be a crap shoot as to whether the site-to-store place is properly staffed. I actually use the Home Depot site-to-store equivalent much more than the Wal-Mart one [probably several times a month, vs. once or twice a year]. Home Depot gets it right. There are still occasional problems, and it would be better if they could fulfill the orders faster, but it still avoids having to search for stuff, which I consider to be of significant value.

philwelch 12y ago

Everyone has a Wal-Mart fairly close to them? I think more people have the ability to reliably receive UPS deliveries than have a Wal-Mart close to them. Who wants to drive into the suburbs to buy stuff? Plus, Amazon lockers.