Walmart's multi-million dollar investment in Texas could save you time and money
Walmart is on track to invest $277 million into stores across Texas, including 12 Houston locations.
The company is expanding shopping options for customers, adding in hi-tech innovations to make your trip to the store even faster.
"Order their items online, come in and go straight to the tower, and get their items out of the tower," said Shawn Holden, assistant manager at Walmart.
You may have seen one of these giant orange pick-up towers at your neighborhood Walmart. One of the towers already exists at the location off Spring Cypress Road in Cypress.
By the end of 2018, Walmart plans to add five more towers to select store locations.
So what is it? It's like a giant hi-tech vending machine, capable of fulfilling your online order in less than a minute.
The tower is for general merchandise only, such as towels, pots, anything not considered grocery. You'll need to download the blue Walmart.com app to fulfill orders through the tower.
Online grocery pickup is also fairly new to Walmart. For this, you'll need to download the orange Walmart Grocery app.
Find the items you need, choose your scheduled pick-up time, and pick up your groceries without ever unbuckling your seat belt.
If you go to the Walmart location in Tomball, you've probably seen a Scan and Go mobile express station. This allows you to scan your items with your phone and pay instantly, skipping the lines.
Walmart hasn't announced which stores will receive this upgrade just yet, but it's available in all Sam's Club stores.
All of these services are offered to Walmart customers free of charge. By downloading the mobile apps, you can receive additional discounts.
Walmart plans to speed up the check out process for customers outside of the store, too.
In the Lawn and Garden Centers, Walmart is introducing Check Out with Me.
This will allow customers to skip the lines and check out on the spot with any store employee using a cellular device and Bluetooth printers that provide your receipt. This means no more running inside or waiting in line to check out.
At least 350 stores across the country will get this upgrade including stores in Houston, Conroe, Katy, Tomball, League City and Humble. The exact locations in those areas haven't been announced yet.
