Walmart remodels New Jersey supercenter

Walmart has completed renovations on a supercenter at 400 Park Place in Secaucus, N.J., marking the occasion on Aug. 18 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony; a community celebration featuring samples from vendors, local food trucks, music and game; and the unveiling of a community-inspired mural. The remodel is part of Walmart’s investment of more than $75 million over two years to update and renovate its 11 New Jersey stores to offer an enhanced shopping experience, as well as to provide local jobs.

“I’m excited to offer New Jerseyans yet another Walmart ‘flagship store’ experience, adding the Secaucus store transformation to our innovative flagship stores in Teterboro and North Bergen,” noted Walmart Regional General Manager Nico Vassol. “I am so proud of how our associates have taken care of our customers, and each other, through the remodel experience, and I am grateful for the strong leadership here and in surrounding stores. Adding this investment to our free college for our associates through Live Better U, to sourcing $15.3 billion in products from New Jersey suppliers, to hosting free wellness events in local communities – Walmart continues to show our commitment to invest in the communities we serve here in New Jersey.”

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The updated store now includes the following features:

• Activated corners: Displays are featured at the corners of home lines, baby and apparel to attract customers and help them touch, feel and become a part of the space. 
• Elevated departments: Displays showcase products out of their boxes so that customers can imagine them fitting into their daily lives. 
• Entertainment of the future: A state-of-the-art electronics department offers more demo stations for products. 
• New products and categories: An expanded pet department includes a selection of fresh pet food, while the apparel and cosmetics sections feature various new brands.
• Reconfigured store layout: The new layout provides more convenient access to well-shopped areas like baby food, pets and paper products, along with an upgraded pharmacy that’s now at the front of the store for easier customer access. 
• Vision Center: The company created a customer-centric Vision Center experience that is convenient, comfortable and affordable and offers an assortment of quality eyeglasses and sunglasses with prescription lenses. 
• Improvements at checkout: The store’sfront end transformation aims to speed up checkout time with self-checkout lanes and staffed registers for customer convenience, and includes four Walmart+ lanes enabling easier checkout for members. 
• Refreshed interior and exterior: This includes paint and signage for easier navigation through the store. 
• Lighting enhancements: New fixtures and LED lighting throughout the store provide better line of sight and easier navigation. 
• Digital touchpoints: These new touchpoints located throughout the store help to communicate to customers the wide range of products and services Walmart offers online, through the use of QR codes and digital screens. For example, in the pet area, a customer may scan the QR code to find additional dog bed options, learn about Walmart’s pet insurance service options or have a 20-pound bag of dog food delivered to their door. 

“This store is more than just a place to shop, it’s a community hub where people come together to connect and support each other,” said Walmart Store Manager Joshua Strudl, a 24-year associate who began his career as a cashier. “I’m proud of this store and each of our associates who work hard every day to serve our customers and communities in New Jersey and New York Metro area. Our customers are going to love the new time-saving changes and beautiful displays to shop from, and our associates can’t wait to serve them.” 

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In recognition of Walmart’s dedication to the communities it serves, Strudl and his associates are presenting $11,000 in grants to these local nonprofit organizations: $5,000 to the Secaucus Youth Alliance, $2,000 to the Secaucus Police Benevolent Association, $2,000 to the Meadowlands YMCA and $2,000 to the Secaucus Fire Department. Last year, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation donated $7.2 million in cash and in kind to New Jersey communities.   

The store’s new mural highlights the Secaucus Greenway, the area’s 2.2-mile raised boardwalk used for birding, running and walking. Secaucus is part of Walmart’s Community Mural Program, the largest public-facing art installation celebrating communities across the United States.

Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart operates more than 10,500 stores and numerous e-commerce websites around the world.

This story originally appeared on Progressive Grocer.