FINCHANNEL

The FINANCIAL — Families in the Chicago area can now experience new ways to save money, while living better – and healthier – lives, with the opening of two new Walmart Health centers adjacent to two newly remodeled supercenters at 4650 W. North Ave (Austin) and 8331 S. Stewart Ave. (Chatham). Both stores and their partnering health centers officially opened this morning.

“These last few months have been especially difficult for this great city, and it has done a remarkable job facing its challenges head on,” said Keith Wyche, Walmart Vice President, Community Engagement & Support. “We are proud to have the opportunity to reopen these stores and health clinics and further demonstrate Walmart’s commitment to serve as the store of the community.”

Walmart Health

These state-of-the-art Walmart Health locations provide affordable and accessible healthcare for members of the Chicago community so they can get the right care at the right time, right in their community – Walmart Health meets them where they live and shop. Walmart Health is partnering with local, on-the-ground health providers to deliver primary care, labs, x-ray and diagnostics, counseling, dental and hearing services all in one facility at transparent pricing regardless of a patient’s insurance status.

(Note: As part of the November 20 opening, Walmart Health will offer primary medical care, optometry and hearing services. Other offerings will be added in the future.)

“Walmart is committed to making healthcare more affordable and accessible for customers in the communities we serve. We are excited to bring Walmart Health into Chicago and offer members of the community a holistic wellness approach by additionally offering specialized community health resources, online education and in-center workshops to educate the community about preventative health and wellness,” said Marcus Osborne, Senior Vice President of Walmart Health. “We think we can make an impactful difference and look forward to continuing to learn how best to deliver the integrated quality care customers want and deserve.”

The two new Walmart Health centers are part of a recent commitment to Chicago to rebuild and reopen four supercenters with an expanded offering of services, including Walmart Academies for associate training and ongoing learning. The other supercenters to be reopened are located at 4626 W. Diversey Ave. and 10900 S. Doty Ave.

The remodels of these four locations include several department transformations that will help customers save time and money. The upgrades also complement the measures the company has taken in its U.S. stores to help protect associates and customers from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“We can’t wait for Chicago customers to see our newly-remodeled Supercenters,” said Walmart store manager Patrice Gibson from the Chatham Supercenter. “We’re continuously investing in new ways to make shopping easier, and we look forward to those in our communities being able to take advantage of what our stores now have to offer.”

Community Support

As part of the project and community investments totaling more than $50M, Walmart is working directly with local vendors and contractors during the remodels and with future routine maintenance work. The stores are also giving more than $80,000 to local organizations including:

• My Block, My Hood, My City
• Trinity United Church of Christ Child Care Centers
• Global Outreach NFP
• Excel Community Development Corp.
• Heirs of the Promise Ministry

Store Improvements

In an effort to create a more seamless and efficient shopping experience, customers can now enjoy store improvements that include:

• Improved produce department layout to better reflect customer shopping patterns
• New layout in Grocery and Housewares
• Enhanced self-checkout for customer convenience
• Updated apparel departments with new signage and fitting rooms
• Expanded adult beverages section with more variety for customers

Innovations

Walmart will continue to innovate to help customers save time and money by giving them the option to shop when, where, and how they want, including:

• Pickup – Busy customers love Walmart’s pickup option. It gives them the convenience of shopping online and the ease of quickly picking up groceries without having to leave their cars. The best part: there is no fee to use Walmart Pickup. Customers shopping using SNAP also have the option to use pickup services in most states.

• Delivery – Walmart’s convenient delivery service is also proving to be a hit with customers. Even more, Walmart has now made both pickup and delivery contact free.

• Express delivery – Customers now have the option to have their deliveries made in under two hours.

• Walmart Pay – A touch-free way to pay.

Meeting the Challenges of COVID-19

As an essential business, and a member of the Chicago community, Walmart understands the role it plays in providing customers with food, medicine and other essential items during this unique time.
Along with the upgrades to the store, the company will continue helping protect associates and customers from the impact of COVID-19 through the extensive measures put in place earlier this year, including:

• Enacting deep-cleaning and sanitizing protocols with guidance from the CDC, which includes a thorough cleaning of key areas of the store (Front entrance, carts, registers, and bathrooms etc.).

• Conducting health screenings and temperature checks for associates prior to them beginning their shifts.

• Requiring all associates to wear Walmart-issued or otherwise approved masks at all times.

• Adding sneeze guards to checkout lanes and pharmacy areas.

• Installing floor decals at the entrances and in checkout lanes to support social distancing.

• Adjusted operating hours to help associates restock shelves while continuing to clean and sanitize the store.

• Enacting an emergency leave policy for associates who are unable or uncomfortable coming to work.

• Continuing to stress the requirement that those customers who can wear protective facial coverings while inside the building do so.

• If you are age 60 and up, self-quarantining, high-risk, or have tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), many stores are offering Pharmacy pickup & delivery services to help you get the medication you need. (Note: Not all options may be available at all stores.)

Drive-Thru: More than 1300 Walmart stores have pharmacy drive-thru service across the country.

No-Contact Curbside Pickup: Associates can bring your prescription right out to your car using a no-contact method.

Mail Delivery: If you can’t make it to a local store, medications can be delivered to your door.