Walmart expects to spend approximately $200 million during the coming year in Florida, opening and remodeling 43 stores in the state while expanding several in-store and online services. The openings and upgrades are part of the approximately $11 billion the retailer will invest in its stores during fiscal 2019.
Additionally, the retailer will evaluate opportunities to expand two services in the state: Mobile Express Scan & Go, which lets shoppers scan items on their mobile device as they shop and pay instantly to skip the checkout line, and Walmart Pickup Towers, which allow shoppers to pick up online orders from outdoor towers using their smartphones. Additionally, Walmart will expand its grocery pickup service to an additional 80 stores.
Walmart will open one new store in Central Florida, two in Jacksonville and three in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market. The remodeling effort will encompass 12 stores in Central Florida, 12 in Tampa Bay, four in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale market, four in West Palm Beach, three in Jacksonville, one in the Panhandle and one in Southwest Florida.
Advertisement
Additionally, Walmart will open a new distribution center in Cocoa that will distribute perishable food to stores across the state, according to Florida Today. The company is planning to hire 375 full-time workers at the facility.
