When Milo’s Tea opened the door to their newest manufacturing facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina, last week, Chair & CEO Tricia Wallwork reflected on their growth with Walmart. What began with the humble act of hand-delivering Milo’s tea to a single store in Birmingham, Alabama, has since grown to include four manufacturing and distribution facilities, over 1,000 local jobs and placement in nearly every Walmart store across America.
With more than two-thirds of our total product spend on items made, grown or assembled in the United States1, stories like Milo’s are common at Walmart, and they’re driven by our belief that small businesses play a powerful role in bringing unique products to market to help meet the diverse needs of customers and communities nationwide. In fact, over 60% of Walmart U.S. suppliers are small businesses2.
More than 40 years ago, Mr. Sam set a priority that still drives us today: supporting American-made products and the small businesses behind them. Simply put, we want small businesses to work with Walmart, but we know getting started can feel complex. That’s why we’re unveiling Grow with US, a new program designed to provide U.S. small businesses with the training, mentorship and resources they need to grow with Walmart. Grow with US is a voluntary, four-step program that gives small businesses access to the following:
- Step 1: Learn — Walmart’s Supplier Academy offers a free, tailored curriculum designed to help small businesses succeed in Walmart’s U.S. stores and online Marketplace. The program includes 30 e-learning modules across four distinct learning paths including Welcome to Walmart 101, Retail Ready Capabilities, Business Fundamentals and Advanced Learning.
- Step 2: Get Discovered — Businesses can showcase their products through Walmart’s product discovery opportunities, including our annual U.S. Open Call, RangeMe product discovery tool or Walmart Marketplace.
- Step 3: Mentorship — Select participants are matched with experienced mentors to help navigate the retail landscape.
- Step 4: Financing — Eligible small businesses can apply for financial support through Walmart’s Early Payment Program and Bridge Marketplace.
Grow with US is part of Walmart’s expanding commitment to small business development, joining a growing family of programs around the world, including Crece con Walmart in Mexico and Vriddhi in India.
U.S. small businesses interested in participating in Grow with US can get started by registering with Walmart as a small business by providing a voluntary SBA certification or requesting small business verification through Walmart.
Another big opportunity for small businesses
In addition to Grow with US, we recently announced that applications for our annual Open Call event will open June 24, 2025. Open Call offers U.S.- based small and medium-sized businesses the chance to pitch their shelf-ready products — made, grown or assembled in the United States — directly to Walmart and Sam’s Club merchants. While the event takes place October 7-8, 2025, in Bentonville, Arkansas, aspiring suppliers don’t have to wait to see if they’ll get an opportunity to pitch their products to Walmart.
During Small Business Month, Walmart is coming to innovators and entrepreneurs with pop-up pitch events that give them the chance to meet with Walmart buyers, get real-time feedback and potentially score a fast pass to the main event in Bentonville.
This year’s Road to Open Call events will be held:
- May 1: Orlando, FL
- May 9: Kansas City, MO
- May 13: Baltimore, MD
- May 21: Austin, TX
Learn more about Walmart’s Road to Open Call at Walmart.com/OpenCall.
Small businesses are the backbone of our communities and there are countless stories of how businesses, like Milo’s, are finding long-term growth and success with Walmart. We're excited to continue providing support for and championing the achievements of these businesses every step of the way. Here's to celebrating the spirit of entrepreneurship and the power of dreams, so Grow with US!
1 More than two-thirds of Walmart U.S. total product spend in FY2024 was on items made, grown, or assembled in the United States.
2 Small business defined as meeting the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Industry Size Standard
