Walmart has launched it Winemakers Selection, offering 10 “distinctive labels” of wine from California, France and Italy. Nichole Simpson, Walmart’s senior wine buyer, explained that the retail giant will sell the wine for about $11 per bottle, but the vino will still be high quality, according to CNBC.
They “drink like a $30 to $40 bottle of wine,” she added.
Walmart began selling its private wine label in about 1,100 stores around the U.S. last month. Before the line was introduced, Simpson spent several months visiting both domestic and international winemakers. She said the labels help enhance the wine experience: Not only can customers get it cheap, but they can understand the story behind every bottle.
“We have made sure (the labels are) easy to read and ‘clean’ for the customer because they don’t have a lot of time,” Simpson said.
Walmart is working to appeal to consumers with more upscale tastes. Last month, it was reported that Lord & Taylor and Walmart were teaming up to create an online store within Walmart.com that will sell around 125 fashion brands, including Tommy Bahama, La La Anthony, H Halston and Effy. The online store is being touted as a “premium” shopping destination on the web.
“This is a tremendous growth opportunity,” said R.J. Cilley, senior vice president of digital, operations and new ventures at Lord & Taylor. “We are growing our footprint to reach exponentially more customers.”
Earlier this year, Walmart announced it is rolling out a new online portal for consumers seeking home goods. The new Walmart Home shopping experience will feature curated collections across nine style categories in a new web space designed to better highlight products like accessories, furniture and other interior design-oriented items. Styling categories will include modern, mid-century, traditional, glam, industrial, bohemian, farmhouse, transitional and Scandinavian.
More than just featuring products, however, Home — as reconceived by Walmart over the last year or so — will work to display the products with editorial imagery and embedded design tips written by in-house experts.