Reshoring is the latest big trend in manufacturing, so leave it to the biggest retailer to get involved in a big way. Now you can, too.
Arkansas-based Walmart is calling on entrepreneurs to pitch their USA-made products to the firm in a daylong event at its headquarters this summer.
“We are opening our doors and making our buyers available to meet with suppliers with one goal in mind: buy more American products,” said Cindi Marsiglio, Walmart’s vice president of U.S. sourcing and manufacturing.
Registration for the U.S. Manufacturing Summit and Open Call for U.S. Products is underway until May 27, 2016. The event itself takes place on June 28.
It ties into a three-year-old policy by the mega-retailer to bring jobs back to the U.S.
In January 2013, Wal-Mart announced plans to purchase an additional $50 billion in U.S. products in 10 years, cumulatively amounting to $250 billion per year by the tenth year.
Walmart says it plans to meet that commitment in a variety of ways, including buying more from existing domestic suppliers, doing business with new domestic suppliers and helping current suppliers reshore their overseas production.
The latest news is timely for midstate audiences.
Earlier this week, we told readers about how Harry Moser, founder of the Reshoring Initiative, recently talked with Pennsylvania state legislators about how to bring manufacturing jobs back to America and this state.
Moser even talked about Walmart. After years of taking heat for undercutting American retailers and producers by buying low-cost imported goods, the Arkansas-based juggernaut has begun a concentrated reshoring effort of its own, he said.
“It’s their perception of what the consumer wants,” Moser explained.
Big deals possible
Deals are possible for just a few to thousands of Walmart stores, including Walmart.com and Sam’s Club locations across the country.
According to Walmart, its 2015 open call event led to agreements for several regional companies.
KettlePizza of Groveland, Mass., a twelve-person company, signed a deal for their pizza oven conversion kit to be on the shelves of 500 Walmart stores, the company said.
Meanwhile, Myndology, Inc. of Appleton, Wisc., a three-person company, landed a deal for their ring-bound flashcards to be sold in over 3,000 Walmart stores.
“Landing a deal with Walmart was huge for us,” said KettlePizza co-founder, George Peters. “Our deal at open call gave our small company the chance at a national audience, which is what we needed to take our company to the next level. There is no faster path to a national retail presence than Walmart. Our deal was a game changer.”
The deadline for entrepreneurs to register for Open Call is May 27. For more details about Walmart’s 2016 U.S. Manufacturing Summit and Open Call, entrepreneurs may visit walmart-jump.com.
