Rocío Alfaro Díaz, Director of Operations at Aurrera Winerycomments that this omnichannel model also considers the Pick Up service in stores and digital kiosks in stores, an initiative that started in 2018.
In some cases, these kiosks, which have the extended catalog of the company and with the support of a purchasing advisor, they have become the first point of contact for the chain’s customers with a digital shopping experience.
The directive explained that during the past year the online sales de Bodega Aurrerá grew 16.6%, with greater demand for white goods, such as washing machines, refrigerators and screens. “In 2022, we delivered more than a million orders and we managed to do it in a profitable way”, he declares.
Only during his “El Fin Irresistible” discount campaign, which took place from November 11 to 23, 2022, “Despensa a tu casa” grew 111%, according to the data that Alfaro shared in an interview with Expansion.
The new units of the chain are already born under this format, with space for pickup and home deliveries. The directive did not specify if the company has plans to remodel the rest of the units and if they have any goals in which all of the Bodegas Aurrerá operate under this format.
Expand the points of sale
Bodega Aurrerá will also accelerate its geographical expansion. The chain, which Walmart acquired in 1997, is keeping pace with openings. During 2021 it opened 110 stores and in 2022 it opened 95 more. The company closed last year with 2,292 stores, which represented 80% of the consolidated units of all Walmart formats in Mexico.
From the beginning of the year to February 15, the chain opened eight units in Mexico to reach unit number 2,300, located in Nuevo León.
The director of operations did not specify under which format of Bodega Aurrerá the next openings will be, which considers the stores Cellar, My Cellar and Cellar Express, whose difference is the size. The first are located in large towns and offer a greater rotation of products, the second are medium-sized stores, while the third are small and are located within the neighborhoods.
“We continue to grow with our physical stores in different parts of the country, we cover the entire national territory with our value proposition. Today, 88% of people live less than 10 minutes from our stores and clubs in the main cities of the republic”, concludes Alfaro Díaz.
The ring of low prices
Bodega Aurrerá is the Walmart format that stands out from the competition with a promise of low prices, below the competition.
To stay in this race, the chain has some initiatives such as the “Winery Basket”which offers basic promotional products, or the “Morralla” offers, through which they offer products from 5 to 25 pesos, which change products and categories.
“What we are looking for is to have a catalog with items aligned to what our customers are looking for and also closely aligned to the temporalities. Our commercial team works with our suppliers to be able to identify the products that we know are what our customers need”, comments the directive.
Bodega Aurrerá has also found in its own brands an option to maintain its low price offerand although there is a commitment to basic products, such as oil, sugar or rice, the chain is looking for opportunities in various categories, such as generic medicines, in which Walmart has participated since 2007. “We are exploring these other items that we know will our clients need”, said Alfaro Díaz.