Walmart Launches High-Tech Vending Machine at Decatur Supercenter

Days after unveiling plans to spend $87.5 million in Illinois stores this year, Walmart is announcing the arrival of a high-tech Pickup Tower at the Decatur Supercenter, providing customers with a new, exciting way to shop. The Pickup Tower is a 16-foot structure that functions like a high-tech vending machine and can fulfill a customer’s online order in less than a minute. This popular customer convenience is part of Walmart’s commitment to lead retail innovation that save customers time and money.

*Click here for an explainer video of the Pickup Tower in action*

The addition of the Pickup Tower at the Decatur Supercenter is just one of 22 Pickup Towers that will be added to Walmart stores across Illinois this year. It is part of Walmart’s plan to spend an estimated $87.5 million this year in Illinois through the remodeling of 16 stores and continued expansion of several innovations that save customers time and money.

“The Pickup Tower is another way for Decatur customers to save time and shop whenever, however and wherever they want,” said Decatur Store Manager Marvin Ford. “We cannot wait for shoppers to try this new innovation that is not only convenient, but easy to use.”

How Walmart Pickup Towers Work:

1. Simply choose from millions of items available on Walmart.com and select the “Pickup” option at checkout.
2. When the item arrives at your local store, an associate loads it into the Pickup Tower and you will receive a notification.
3. When you arrive at the store, step up to the Pickup Tower and scan the barcode sent to your smartphone.

In addition to Pickup Towers, Walmart will continue to innovate to help customers save time and money by creating a seamless shopping experience that gives them the options to shop when, where and how they want. The following are examples of the customer-focused innovations that will be expanded this year in Illinois.

• Online Grocery Pickup – Busy customers love Walmart’s grocery pickup option, which combines the convenience of shopping online and the ease of quickly picking up groceries without having to leave their cars. The best part: it’s all at no additional cost. Walmart plans to expand the popular program to 40 stores across Illinois by the end of the year.

• Grocery Delivery – Walmart’s convenient grocery delivery service is also proving to be a hit with customers. This year, Walmart plans to add the service to 37 Illinois stores, increasing its coverage area in the state.

• FAST Unloader – Today, product is unloaded as it arrives at the store through a complex, highly manual process that has seen little innovation over the last 50 years – until now. A new system in Walmart backrooms – known as FAST – automatically scans and sorts items that come off trucks based on priority and department, allowing associates to spend less time unloading in the backroom and more time on the sales floor with customers. This year, Walmart plans to expand the technology to 50 stores in Illinois.

• Autonomous Floor Scrubber – The autonomous floor scrubber uses assisted autonomy technology to perform the task of cleaning and scrubbing the concrete floors in stores. The company plans to expand the technology to 52 stores across Illinois this year.