Walmart Wraps Annual Open Call Event, 167 Products to Advance, 705 to Receive Further Consideration
June 30 2021 - 9:45PM
Business Wire
Company shares more details on “American
Lighthouses” concept, designed to overcome barriers to U.S.
production, will focus on key categories, starting with
textiles
Open Call 2021 is now in the books with more than 900 small
businesses from across the country pitching their products made,
grown or assembled in the U.S. to Walmart and Sam’s Club merchants
today. As expected, this year’s cohort marked the largest number of
business owners ever to take part in the one-day event,
representing all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto
Rico. Of those businesses, 167 of their products are advancing to
the next stage in the process to land a deal with Walmart or Sam’s
Club and another 705 are receiving further consideration. During
this year’s virtual Open Call event, small businesses also learned
more about Walmart’s “American Lighthouses,” a plan to unite key
stakeholders in specific regions of the country to identify and
overcome top-down barriers to U.S. production.
“Open Call supports Walmart’s overall commitment to U.S
manufacturing and small businesses. In March, we announced an
additional spend of $350 billion on items made, grown or assembled
in the U.S. over the next ten years,” said Laura Phillips, senior
vice president, customer and business development and U.S.
manufacturing for global sourcing at Walmart. “We also announced
our American Lighthouses concept, which strives to accelerate
progress on this commitment. To do this, we aim to bring together
key regions and various stakeholders to address obstacles, support
and pilot innovative projects and provide tools and resources for
businesses to invest in U.S. production, making the supply chain
more efficient, sustainable and making it easier for U.S.
manufacturing to flourish.”
Walmart’s American Lighthouses concept will focus on these
categories: textiles; metals and motors; food processing; plastics;
pharmaceutical and medical supplies. During Open Call today, the
retailer shared that textiles will be the first focus area for
Lighthouses.
“We are inspired and excited by Walmart’s American Lighthouses
concept and agree that U.S. manufacturing is critical, sustainable
and achievable through collaborative efforts across multiple
stakeholders,” said Peter Senger, senior vice president/general
manager, merchandising, marketing and sales at Renfro Brands, a
leading producer of socks and legwear products located in North
Carolina. “We employ about 2,000 people across the U.S. and working
with Walmart has allowed us to continue to support the needs of the
American worker. We believe that an investment in American jobs is
an investment that provides for American families and strengthens
the communities they live in with a stable and sustainable way of
life.”
Open Call supports Walmart’s overall $350 billion commitment to
U.S. Manufacturing. In addition to an increase in spending and
support for small businesses and diverse suppliers through efforts
like Open Call, the company estimates the commitment will support
the creation of more than 750,000 new American jobs and will help
avoid 100 million metric tons of CO2 emissions by sourcing closer
to customers.
Businesses who advanced during Open Call today will now work
with merchants on opportunities to sell their products in Walmart
stores and Sam’s Clubs. All businesses who took part in Open Call
are eligible to sell their shelf-stable products on Walmart’s
various online platforms Walmart.com, Walmart Marketplace or
Samsclub.com.
The day kicked off with a General Session in which the business
owners heard from guest celebrity – and current Walmart vendor –
Jay Leno, who encouraged businesses and entrepreneurs to make the
perfect pitch by bringing their “A” game, looking Walmart merchants
in the eye and delivering more than they promise.
Governors from Utah, Colorado, Georgia, Ohio, Missouri, Indiana
and Arkansas also joined in to thank small business and Walmart for
supporting U.S. manufacturing.
The General Session was hosted by Tony Waller, vice president
constituent relations and racial equity - Walmart U.S. Other
Walmart leaders, including Doug McMillon, president and CEO -
Walmart Inc., and John Furner, president and CEO - Walmart U.S.,
also spoke to the business owners.
About Walmart
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save
money and live better - anytime and anywhere - in retail stores,
online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, approximately
220 million customers and members visit approximately 10,500 stores
and clubs under 48 banners in 24 countries and eCommerce websites.
With fiscal year 2021 revenue of $559 billion, Walmart employs 2.2
million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in
sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity.
Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting
https://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at
https://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at
https://twitter.com/walmart.
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