FAQ: New Home Office

The new Walmart Home Office will be in Bentonville on roughly 350 acres of land on the east side of J Street, between Central Avenue and 14th Street (Highway 102). For years, the company has operated warehouse spaces and office buildings on this site. By demolishing and recycling those existing buildings and offices, we are revitalizing the existing tract of land, contributing to the economic growth in the area and integrating with the broader Bentonville community development efforts. The plans include 12 office buildings, along with amenity buildings, parking decks and surface lots. The development will be constructed in phases.

Our campus will be integrated into the community, designed to be an inclusive and seamless part of the natural beauty of our Northwest Arkansas region. We’ve worked hard to develop a well-designed, exciting, and cohesive campus master plan our associates, their families and the community will be proud of, specifically by:

• Integrating the biking and walking trails from the greater Bentonville community into and through the campus, while preserving and embracing the beauty of the “Natural State” that is unique to our region. 
• Reflecting our commitment to, and leadership of, environmental sustainability by being good stewards of our natural resources and minimizing our impact on the environment. 
• Encouraging associates to enjoy and connect with nature – both indoors and outdoors – through natural lighting, warm interior finishes, mass timber construction and views of trees, courtyards, landscapes and lakes. 

Mass timber construction methods were selected because it is sustainable and efficient. Mass timber construction is designed with precision specifications and engineered to strict performance tolerances, allowing us to prefabricate complete structural building systems, which enhances the efficiency of our project and saves both time and money.

This is part of Walmart’s strategy to win and has been contemplated for several years. The new facilities will help accelerate change, accommodate a more digitally native workforce, and encourage more collaboration and speed. The combined changes will help us create a more connected campus for our existing teams and help us attract the next generation of talent we need to compete.

The new Home Office will be true to the company’s Every Day Low Cost (EDLC) roots. Through each step in this project, we are leading the journey to empower associates and get the most out of our existing teams, while helping us attract high-quality talent in the future. And we will do all of this by adhering to our EDLC culture – not by cutting corners but through smart design.

A strong emphasis of the project will be on supporting a culture of servant leadership, which puts our customers and associates first, and maintaining our commitment to fiscal and environmental responsibility. This project will be done in phases, and the cost will be part of our annual budgeting process.

Our goal is to open in phases through 2025. As with any major construction project, timing may change, and we will continue to provide updates.

In 2019, demolition, infrastructure and utility construction began, along with initial construction of the new Layout Center and we continued design of the amenity and office buildings. The new Layout Center construction was completed in late 2020 and became the first building on the campus to welcome associates.

2021 was a year of paving, parking and power. Our amenity buildings finished design work and we went vertical with two parking decks as well as two Central Utility Plants on campus.

2022 was a year filled with exciting announcements, each one giving a glimpse of innovative amenities on the new campus including vertical construction of Walton Family Whole Health & Fitness, Sam Walton Hall, the food hall and the child care center. Roadwork and vertical construction on additional parking decks was also a major focus last year.

2023 has already been a major year of vertical growth across the campus, from office buildings and the hotel to the continued progress on the amenities that began to take shape in 2022. We’re excited about the changes yet to come this year as the campus really begins to take shape and we head into our final push to get everyone into their new workspace.

Yes, construction of our new campus is now underway, and will result in some road closures, but we are committed to keeping an east to west route around the campus open to the public throughout every phase of the project.

Here’s what to expect:

• Improvements to 8th Street began Spring 2022 and are expected to continue through early 2024. 
• Improvements to J Street began in late Summer 2022 and will continue through 2024.

Yes! The newly unveiled childcare center, Little Squiggles Children’s Enrichment Center, demonstrates our commitment to building a culture and environment that allows our associates’ families to grow and thrive. Offering a discovery-driven approach to learning with a research-based curriculum, the 73,000 square-foot amenity will support over 500 children, ranging from six-weeks to pre-K, of campus-based associates in Northwest Arkansas. The childcare center is scheduled to be completed in May 2024.

Yes. With construction well underway, Walton Family Whole Health & Fitness plans to open to members in early 2024. At more than 360,000 square feet, the new facility will have seamless integration with its natural surroundings and connection to community offering robust programming and resources to support the mind, body and spirit of every individual.

Experience the full virtual tour of Walton Family Whole Health & Fitness.

Yes. From recruiting visits and company gatherings to visiting associates coming to share and learn, having an on-campus hotel will enhance each visit.

With plans to open in Fall 2024, AC Hotel by Marriott Bentonville will be located in the Northwest neighborhood of campus, on the Razorback Greenway, with convenient access to office buildings, campus amenities, retail environment and a network of walking and biking paths.

More information about the hotel can be found here.

A centrally located food hall in the heart of campus will be convenient for associates coming from any neighborhood on campus. The food hall will offer a flexible space for associates to connect with colleagues, while enjoying a wide variety of creative, fresh, healthy food options – including custom salads, nutritious offerings, comfort foods and regional culinary fare from across the globe.

In addition, each neighborhood will have convenient food and beverage offerings, including:

• Food truck plazas in various locations across campus that can rotate as needed. 
• Coffee bars and grab-and-go stations offering artisanal coffee drinks, organic and healthy snacks, pastries, sweets, ready-made salads and sandwiches. 
• In-office food pantries on each floor with coffee machines, filtered water stations, refrigerators for associate food storage, vending machines and seating with tables.

Walmart is investing in convenient and safe parking decks to serve our associates for decades to come. A key principle of the design and placement of these decks in each campus neighborhood is to enable associates to have a five-minute walk to adjacent office and amenity buildings. Each parking deck will have more than 1,000 parking spaces and will be equipped with bike and electric vehicle parking, as well as future flexibility for autonomous vehicles.

The new campus will complement the growth and evolution of Bentonville’s broader urban development plan. We describe the landscape plan as “Big Nature,” which reflects the Northwest Arkansas native ecologies and Walmart company values. Extensive tree canopies and understory planting will provide native habitat, manage stormwater and reconnect associates and visitors to nature. Planting selections will primarily be low maintenance, low irrigation and native, with a focus on pollinator-friendly species. WiFi-enabled outdoor spaces will support our flexible workplace, with each neighborhood containing a large quad, in addition to smaller open spaces and courtyards associated with individual buildings. A cohesive network of complete streets, shaded walkways and dedicated bikeways keep all areas of the campus well connected.

The Big Nature plan encourages interaction between Walmart associates, the Bentonville community and the physical environment to reinforce sustainable living and holistic well-being. In support of this vision, the landscape design will reflect the complex mosaic of native habitats found throughout the region and the distinct culture that has been an integral part of Walmart’s history. The result will be a unique work environment that attracts future associates with a direct connection to nature and the outdoors that can only be found in Northwest Arkansas.

The site of our new campus originally boasted a variety of both young and mature healthy trees. Many of the young trees were harvested to be later planted on campus. However, a portion of these trees are a significant size, providing air quality, property value, energy savings and opportunities for associates to connect with nature, while contributing to sense of place. For that reason, select mature trees will remain on the site, and office buildings, parking decks and other structures have been situated around them, allowing them to remain onsite.

The new campus will be designed to support all types of cyclists, including:

• Recreational riders, who typically use off-street bike trails. 
• Commuters, who take more efficient routes on a combination of trails and streets. 
• Associates, who will ride bikes to move throughout campus. 

We are designing the new campus to facilitate transportation choices that are healthier for our associates, reduce traffic and parking strains and support the well-being of the greater community. These efforts will help us meet the goal of 10% of Bentonville-based Home Office associates using alternative transportation, like bicycles, to commute to work. Each neighborhood will have bike storage, showers and changing rooms. We will also have micro-mobility options (bikes, scooters, etc.) available for associates to ride between buildings or to and from their vehicles.

Walmart entered into an agreement with ABN Holdings, LLC, for the sale of Walmart’s existing Home Office properties and nearby parcels of land. More information about the agreement can be found here.

We plan to bring most of the Home Office associates in Northwest Arkansas onto this central campus. Associates working at the Sam’s Club Support office will not reside on the new campus. They will continue to work in their current building.

The completion of this campus does not have a direct impact on these other campuses. We want our new Home Office to not only inspire those who work in Bentonville, but our other associates around that world who so frequently visit this place where it all started.

As we continue to run our business between now and "move-in day," we are remodeling existing spaces and frequently moving different departments around the offices. When it makes sense, we will repurpose existing fixtures, furniture, and office equipment. This will allow us to lessen the total amount of new equipment required in the new campus buildings, as well as spread out the replacement cycle of office furniture and fixtures for years to come.

From the start, we have built a tremendous amount of flexibility into the design of the campus, The overall approach to the campus design is very flexible so it can accommodate our future workspace and technology needs. We are well positioned to adjust as business, health, or other requirements change over time.