The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.
(Questions from industry analysts are provided in full, but answers are omitted - download the transcript to see the full question-and-answer session)
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. Do you want to join me over here? .
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Yeah, looking good. Thanks. I'm Brad Thomas, the hardlines/broadlines analyst with Keybanc Capital Markets. And thrilled to be
here, and those cookies look quite good.
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Rich, you joined Walmart in 2019. What attracted you to Walmart and this opportunity?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: You mentioned in your presentation that retail media is disrupting advertising and that Walmart is a leader on that front. I was hoping
we could talk a little bit more about how Walmart Connect is different from other media and from other retail media.
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JANUARY 14, 2025 / 5:15PM, WMT.N - Walmart Inc at ICR Conference
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Let's talk a bit more about the value of the data that Walmart has and its customer insights. Why is having large-scale, first-party data
so important to marketers?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. How does Walmart Connect serve the core customer? Or how does it affect the shopping experience?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: You alluded to Vizio, an acquisition that recently closed. Can you talk about how the acquisition came about and how it will fit into
Walmart Connect?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. Can you talk a bit more about Walmart Connect's omnichannel proposition and why that's a differentiator and why that's so
important?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Rich, as a Walmart customer myself, as I look at the app, I do see the ads. The business has gotten fairly sizable. How do you think
about what inning you are in the growth journey ahead here for Walmart Connect?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: I think everybody knows that advertising is a higher margin business. And looking forward for Walmart, advertising will be an
important driver of the company's goals to grow operating income faster than sales. But I was hoping you could talk a bit more just
about the financial returns from advertising and how you think about that.
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. I want to double click a bit on how Walmart Connect touches the store experience. You alluded to that in your presentation.
How is advertising influencing the shopping experience in the store?
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JANUARY 14, 2025 / 5:15PM, WMT.N - Walmart Inc at ICR Conference
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. A question we get sometimes is how Walmart Connect fits into the interaction with a vendor? Are you a separate conversation
with a vendor? Are you in the same negotiations with the vendor for your stores? How does that work?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. Can you talk about your strategic priorities for growth for the business going forward?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. Rich, you talked about some pretty exciting growth opportunities ahead for the industry overall and retail advertising, taking
share. Just as you think about gaining factors that drive the pace of this shift in advertising spend, how do you think about what
some of those drivers might be?
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JANUARY 14, 2025 / 5:15PM, WMT.N - Walmart Inc at ICR Conference
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: We've got a minute left. So I'll just summarize everything maybe with one last question here for you, Rich. But in closing, could you
speak to the data points that you see in the trenches, if you will, that give you conviction in the growth outlook for Walmart Connect?
Question: Brad Thomas - Keybanc Capital Markets Inc. - Analyst
: Great. So thank you.
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