Is the US online shopping boom over? Walmart's online traffic fell 8%

In the early days of the pandemic, Walmart customers were accustomed to shopping online from the comfort of their homes in their pajamas, but those days appear to be gone.

Despite the retail giant's heavy investments in its e-commerce business, average daily visits to its website were still down 8% as of November compared with last year, according to web analytics firm Similarweb.

According to Similarweb, about 14 million people visit Walmart's website each day, down from 15.3 million and 15.6 million in 2021 and 2020.

But even as online shopping has declined this year, more people are flocking to Walmart stores. As of Dec. 4, average daily traffic to Walmart stores was up 1% from a year ago, according to estimates by data firm Placer.ai. In the most recent quarter, Walmart’s food sales were up about 14% from a year earlier, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Brian Yarbrough, an analyst at Edward Jones, said changes in consumer shopping behavior reflect a reduction in fear of the epidemic and a search for low-priced goods due to inflationary pressures.

Yarbrough added that food has been Walmart's fastest-growing category over the past few quarters as consumers flock to Walmart stores to buy food and daily necessities due to inflation and cut back on discretionary items such as toys.

"So I think online traffic is going down because people are spending less on non-essential items, which are what they're buying online."

According to a survey by U.S. consulting firm Brick Meets Click, online sales of all grocery stores in the United States fell nearly 10% year-on-year in November.

Although online traffic is not good, it does not mean that Walmart has not invested in its online business.

Walmart offered exclusive online-only discounts on the three Mondays leading up to Black Friday, and the retailer also launched an exclusive Cyber ​​Monday ad with the cast of the movie "Office Space."

In addition, Walmart is trying to add new tools and features to attract third-party sellers to its platform, and has been vigorously promoting customers and employees to sign up for Walmart +, a membership model similar to Amazon Prime, which allows consumers to enjoy a series of benefits such as free shipping after purchase.

While Walmart's online business may not see the same astonishing growth it saw during the pandemic in the future, Yabrough still said he believes online shopping will outpace in-store shopping in the coming years.

Walmart

USA

Online shopping