Walmart Sets up B2B Fulfilment Centre in UP to Help Small Biz

Walmart India, the Indian arm of Walmart Inc., has now set up its maiden business-to-business (B2B) Fulfilment Center (FC) in Uttar Pradesh, which is its second FC in India. The first FC center was thrown open in November 2017 in Bhiwandi, Mumbai.

The main objective of setting up the FC in Sarojini Nagar tehsil of Lucknow district is to enable small businesses to prosper. The newly set up FC, therefore, proposes to cater to the business needs of underserved small businesses like 'kiranas'/resellers, offices and institutions (O&I) and hotels, restaurants and caterers (HORECA). It will enable Walmart India to offer unique propositions of a wide range of quality merchandise & local assortment at ‘Every Day Low Prices’, unique shopping options, 24-hour door-step delivery and convenient payment solutions to such business members in and around Lucknow (within a radius of 100 km).

The FC will significantly contribute to the local and state economy by creating an estimated 1,500 direct and indirect jobs. It will significantly boost the small/regional supplier eco-system as it will source merchandise from local suppliers to fulfill the needs of its members in the area.

Krish Iyer, Walmart India’s President and CEO, said that the new center will strengthen its B2B wholesale business in and around Lucknow and step up its B2B e-commerce model further. This will enable 'kiranas', resellers and other businesses in Lucknow and neighboring areas to get access to a wide and exciting assortment of merchandise without stepping out of their stores. This FC has been curated carefully keeping in mind the finer nuances of convenience of small resellers, 'kiranas' and other businesses which are: choice, value and service coupled with great quality, competitively priced merchandise, doorstep delivery and easy payment solutions.

Significantly, for Walmart India, Uttar Pradesh is a crucial and priority growth region and the company is further expanding its business in the state to support 'kiranas', small farmers and local suppliers here. The initiative will help in making them successful, he said.

The other significant aspect is that the FC will contribute to the state and local economies by creating more than 1500 direct and indirect local jobs, developing SME suppliers, and empowering local communities. The company is also taking another definitive step towards building an impactful distribution eco-system by working with its partners, he said.