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BH Walmart Will Undergo Major Renovations This Summer

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By this fall shoppers who arrive at Walmart of Benton Harbor to pick up items ordered online will no longer have to trek to the back of the store to claim those purchases thanks to a multi-million dollar makeover coming to that store and eleven other Michigan properties starting this summer.

Walmart CEO Doug McMillon told investors this week, “We’re moving faster to combine our digital and physical assets to make shopping easier and more enjoyable for customers.”

The Benton Harbor Walmart Supercenter at Mall Drive and Cinema Way is one of a dozen to get the facelift starting in August, much as the Niles Supercenter’s upgrade of last year.

Remodeling is slated to include some or all of the following amenities:

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  • Relocation of in-store pickup areas to the front of the center…
  • Improved sight-lines through increased signage and lowered product shelving…
  • Departmental expansion in the bakery, deli, produce section and among baby items…
  • Creation of lounge-style seating for those awaiting online order pick-ups…
  • Improved in-store navigation through wider aisles and angled aisles…
  • Increasing the availability and quantity of fresh and organic food items…

While store officials say that some of those things might be considered “little things that might not be noticed,” they are essentially a sea-change in the manner in which the country’s most prolific retailer presses its resources into action.

By recognizing the ever-increasing customer focus on click and order, the major chain wants to keep their brick and mortar a critical part of the equation by making things more user friendly for everyone involved.

With remodeling slated to launch in August, the renovations and changes should be done by early November at the latest and the store is expected to remain open and operating full time throughout the process.

In addition to the Benton Harbor store, the following Michigan Walmart properties will undergo the remodeling plan:

  • Canton Township’s Michigan Avenue store
  • Grand Blanc
  • Hastings
  • Howell
  • Lansing’s Towne Centre Boulevard Store
  • Portage
  • Saginaw
  • Saline
  • Southgate
  • Van Buren Township
  • Woodhaven

The 12 Michigan stores are among some 500 being revamped this year following a similar number of updates a year ago.

Walmart’s financials were released last week, reflecting strong online sales with an increase in that department alone of some 63-percent in the first quarter as compared to last year. Overall sales in the U.S. advanced by just under 3-percent with net sales topping $75.4-billion.

Walmart also opened a new West Michigan store in Whitehall just north of Muskegon.