Walmart Shifts Merchandising Decision-Making Back to Store Owners

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Ongoing operational changes at Wal-Mart could mean more costs for suppliers on top of recently added charges related to the retailer’s efforts to amend its vendor contracts. Walmart U.S. CEO Greg Foran said in Tuesday’s (Aug. 18) earnings release that several changes underway will have a direct impact with suppliers.

Somewhat buried in the release was a statement that involved product features and modular decisions, which are important to suppliers. Foran said Wal-Mart is shifting some of the decisions involving modulars and features back to store operators. Insiders within the local supplier community said there are implications for small and larger product vendors regarding the modular changes.

Large suppliers who in past years have downsized their merchandising staffs could be forced to shift budgets and once again reallocate more resources to the stores. Another alternative would be to outsource the work to one of several merchandising service firms across the country.

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The Home Depot Acquires Interline Brands

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Source: Hardware & Building Supply Dealer

The Home Depot said Monday it completed its $1.625 billion acquisition of Interline Brands, a national distributor and direct marketer of broad-line maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) products.

The agreement to acquire Interline was previously announced on July 22, 2015.

“We’re delighted to officially welcome Interline’s associates and customers into The Home Depot family,” said Craig Menear, chairman, CEO and president of The Home Depot. “By joining forces with Interline, we’ll be able to better serve our pro customers whether in- store, online or at their place of business. We look forward to the value this acquisition will bring to our customers and shareholders.”

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