Walmart's investment in Chicago now includes the following projects: Supercenter in West Chatham (opening spring 2012). Supercenter in Pullman (opening spring 2013). Walmart Market in the West Loop (opening fall 2011). Walmart Market in West Englewood (opening spring 2012). Walmart Express [image-nocss] in West Chatham (opening summer 2011). Walmart Express in West Englewood (opening winter 2012). The Walmart Express stores in Chicago will be less than 30,000 square feet and will focus on a broad assortment of brands at everyday low prices, selling grocery, pharmacy and limited general merchandise.
Walmart Market--previously called Neighborhood Market--will range in size from 30,000 to 60,000 sq. ft. and provide a wider assortment of fresh grocery, as well as a bakery and delicatessen.
The Walmart Supercenter will continue to serve as a one-stop destination, offering full-service grocery as well as a wide range of general merchandise.
(Click here for previous CSP Daily News coverage of Wal-Mart's formatting plans.)At an event on the site of one new store, Mayor Richard M. Daley and Ald. Latasha Thomas joined Walmart to share plans for new small and midsized stores in the West Englewood community that will each provide local residents with another option for affordable groceries. West Englewood is in the heart of a food desert and one of Chicago's most underserved communities.
These new stores, combined with the company's existing projects, will create close to 1,000 new jobs and nearly 200 construction jobs putting Walmart on the path to meeting the goals outlined in its "Chicago Community Investment Partnership."
"When I met with Walmart last year, I encouraged them to take an approach that addressed the needs of the urban shopper if they truly wanted to make a difference in our underserved neighborhoods," said Daley. "Today, it appears that Walmart has done just that by creating smaller urban store formats that will better serve our communities. I applaud their leadership in creating jobs and providing retail and grocery services in areas of the city that need it most."
Julie Murphy, senior vice president of Walmart U.S., who is based in Chicago, said, "Mayor Daley has been a champion of economic development in the city and his support of Walmart through the years has allowed us the opportunity to do what we do best: open stores that create jobs and offer a broad assortment of products at everyday low prices. Moving forward, we will continue to identify sites in Chicago's food deserts, while also looking for opportunities to help even more Chicagoans save money and live better."
And Thomas said, "The new jobs, economic development and access to quality fresh produce will be welcomed by the residents of these communities."
In June 2010, Walmart announced the "Chicago Community Investment Partnership," a five-year plan to open several dozen stores, create approximately 10,000 jobs and 2,000 unionized construction jobs, generate more than $500 million in sales and property taxes and develop charitable partnerships worth $20 million.
Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart Stores serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at 8,970 retail units under 60 different banners in 15 countries. With fiscal year 2011 sales of $419 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide.
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