Why Walmart published its first-ever home catalog
Walmart recently published its first catalog of home furniture and decor as a way to build demand ahead of the holiday season in a category that will be crucial in winning over more high-income shoppers.
The catalog, published in August for the fall season, shows off products such as sofas, tables, appliances, rugs, pillows and blankets in the context of bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchens. The pages point readers to Walmart’s website, where they can shop for the pictured items through text and QR codes. It’s indicative of how Walmart is experimenting with new ways to convey its home business moving forward after its merchants have worked to broaden its assortment.
The publication is a symbol both of the lasting utility of print catalogs as a marketing tool and of Walmart wanting to redefine itself as a retailer for both low- and high-income shoppers that delivers high-quality yet affordable products.
“We are making sure that high style and quality are accessible to the reach of our customers, no matter what income base that they’re in,” Creighton Kiper, svp of home for Walmart U.S., told Modern Retail. “To actually show the breadth of assortment in a coordinated way requires some type of static creative.”
Kiper said the retailer sent the the catalogs to a mix of new, existing and lapsed customers. The company brought the catalog together quickly, both coming up with the idea and publishing it this year, according to him. He said the company has yet to determine whether it will do another catalog, such as in the spring.
“The team worked really quickly to get this out for our customers just in time for the holidays, a key demand season for our business and our customers,” he said. “We will continue to make sure we show up with items and inspire people to leave with rooms, and we will make sure that all the imagery and creative that’s necessary on our app, in our stores and with our vignettes [in-store displays] … will remind the customers that they can have the room of their dreams and afford it.”
Kiper said the retailer sent the catalogs to a mix of new, existing and lapsed customers. He declined to share exact details, such as quantity or geographic information on who received the catalogs. Still, he said, impression and engagement figures driven by the catalog have far exceeded the company’s expectations.
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“This is very much a strategy around making sure top-of-mind consideration, awareness and reappraisal was being done for our customers — new customers and existing customers. [These include] customers who shop our box for other products, but maybe it’s been a while since they’ve seen our dinner plates or rugs or throws or candles,” Kiper said. “All customers are looking for some form of inspiration [in] designing, decorating or giving a punch to our room or a space. Our strategy is to democratize style, but it’s also to bring style and joy to every space that our customer has, and to do that affordably and effortlessly.”
Polly Wong, president of marketing firm Belardi Wong — which was not involved in the Walmart catalog — said that, out of Belardi Wong’s more than 300 active retail clients, all have some sort of direct-mail presence.
“Whether it’s full-size catalogs or folded pieces or postcards, most retailers recognize at this point that you have to have a marketing mix across online and offline channels to really reach the consumer,” Wong said. “Because of the algorithms, when it comes to digital targeting, you’ve got about a 20% chance of reaching who you want to when you want to. … You really can’t just rely on digital channels.”
Wong said her agency works with dozens of home brands on catalogs. Most home brands, she said, are still in the mail six to 10 times each year to current customers and target prospects. That could include anything from postcards to full-size catalogs. For home brands specifically, she said print allows them to put their full assortment on display differently than they can online. Additionally, print catalogs can be helpful in inspiring customers by showing them different ways that items can be paired together in their home.
“It’s not uncommon for our home brands that we work with to mail more than a million prospects at a time in every catalog mailing,” Wong said. “You’re talking about these programs that are driving significant revenue.”
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Walmart has been working on updating its home assortment over the past two or three years, Kiper said, through private brands as well as brands like Beautiful by Drew Barrymore, My Texas House, DeLonghi, Dyson and Swissgear.
To woo customers, Kiper said the retailer has aimed to bring in premium products at significantly lower prices than at competitors.
“We’ve got a wonderful team of designers, product development [employees], sourcing [employees] and merchants that make sure they are absolutely on-trend, find the best manufacturing and cost-engineer to ensure it’s the highest quality without any waste,” Kiper said. “We make sure we run in a way that it’s sustainable for our business, but it’s also accessible for our customers.”