Walmart Expands to Bring One-Stop Shopping Convenience to Bolingbrook Community

Bolingbrook store adds 150 jobs, offers full grocery department and added values

BOLINGBROOK, Ill., Aug. 9, 2010 – The newly expanded Walmart in Bolingbrook is celebrating its grand opening this week, adding 150 jobs while giving local shoppers a glimpse of the company’s next generation of store design and customer experience. The results of a 10-month remodeling project will be unveiled at 7 a.m., Wednesday, Aug. 18 with local dignitaries joining store manager Luis Elvir and store associates at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. The newly expanded Bolingbrook Walmart, located at 200 S. Bolingbrook Drive, added a complete grocery department and renovated the store with a new layout, wider aisles, low-profile shelving, bright interior paint scheme, enhanced lighting and easy-to-read signage to make the shopping experience more convenient for customers.

According to Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar, the village of Bolingbrook and Walmart were able to work together to produce a facility that will serve the people of DuPage County for many years.

“Walmart is an asset to our community and an outstanding community member,” said Mayor Claar. “Whenever we have a community project involving scouts or children’s activities, Walmart is always there to assist us. We appreciate the support Walmart provides our community with their resources. Their investment in the remodeling of our Bolingbrook store also shows Walmart’s belief in and commitment to our community,” he added.

The Bolingbrook Walmart expansion added approximately 150 associate positions, according to Elvir. He has been with the Bolingbrook store for two years and started his Walmart career ten years ago as an hourly associate cart pusher in the Bedford Park store. “I am a true example of having a successful career with Walmart,” said Elvir. “Now I can help provide opportunities for many new associates that live in this community,” he added. Of the current store associates, 18 have been with the store since it originally opened in 1990.

In recent months, Walmart has taken major steps to refresh its stores, merchandising and customer experience. The improvements have all come together in the company’s newest stores, such as the Bolingbrook Walmart, with fast service, a friendly shopping experience and clean stores. The expanded Walmart features a more open shopping environment with wider aisles that contain no product displays and a new layout with time and money-saving features.

The expanded Bolingbrook Walmart now features a refreshed, earth-toned façade complete with a new logo. Inside, customers will notice a bright interior color palette that creates an inviting shopping experience and helps define the store’s merchandise areas. Lower shelving creates an improved sightline and directional signage on every aisle helps customers find everyday necessities more quickly. Walmart aligned the departments that customers shop most frequently, including moving the pet supplies next to the grocery department.

The Bolingbrook Walmart added 38,000-square feet to offer customers a full line of groceries, including a new deli offering freshly prepared meal solutions for busy people on-the-go, a meat department, fresh produce, a new floral department and a dairy department, as well as a bakery featuring artisan breads and custom cakes. The store also added more than 500 additional Hispanic and 100 additional Asian grocery items for customers.

The expansion brings Walmart customers an expanded electronics department that doubled in size and now features a wide selection of the latest consumer electronics and home entertainment. The new design includes a more hands-on experience for customers with expansive video gaming selection and portable electronics. The interactive experience enables shoppers to test new technology.

A new department called Celebration Station has been added and will feature party supplies, greeting cards, balloons and helium tanks, cake supplies and gift wrap.

The Bolingbrook Walmart, like all new Walmart stores, includes energy-efficient technology and environmentally friendly features to reduce energy and water consumption and minimize waste. The store’s skylights harvest daylight and reduce the amount of energy required to light the store by up to 75 percent daily. LED lighting in the store operates 70 percent more efficiently than traditional fluorescent lighting.

The cement used in the concrete flooring is made with recycled materials, and the floor’s finish reduces the need for chemical cleaners. Low-flow toilets and faucets reduce the water used in the bathrooms. The new store also operates a recycling program and will promote sustainable product purchases.

Community and business leaders including Bolingbrook Mayor Roger Claar, members of the Bolingbrook Chamber of Commerce as well as Bolingbrook Village Trustees will join Claar and Walmart associates at 7 a.m. Wednesday for a brief ribbon-cutting ceremony. The local Bolingbrook VFW Color Guard 5917 as well as Woodridge American Legion Post 1288 will present the colors and assistant manager Ernice Harris will sing the national anthem.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT), or “Walmart,” serves customers and members more than 200 million times per week at more than 8,400 retail units under 55 different banners in 15 countries. With fiscal year 2010 sales of $405 billion, Walmart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. A leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity, Walmart ranked first among retailers in Fortune Magazine’s 2009 Most Admired Companies survey. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting www.walmartstores.com and on Twitter at http://Twitter.com/walmart. Online merchandise sales are available at www.walmart.com and www.samsclub.com.

• Location: 200 S. Bolingbrook Drive, Bolingbrook, Ill.
• 156,000-square-foot Walmart, gaining an additional 38,000 square feet
• Store opens Wednesday, Aug.18, following a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 7 a.m.
• Store manager: Luis Elvir
• Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week

• Full line of groceries including a bakery, a deli serving fresh food and meal solutions, meat and dairy products, fresh produce and floral department
• More than 30 merchandise departments such as apparel and accessories, a lawn and garden center, health and beauty aids, and an expanded electronics department
• Convenience services include a pharmacy, vision center, digital photo processing center and a Walmart Connect Center
• Leased areas and services include a Dunkin Donuts

• Store plans to employ approximately 285 associates, including 150 newly added positions
• The average wage at Walmart for full-time hourly associates in Illinois is approximately $12.28 per hour*
• Walmart benefits – available to eligible full- and part-time associates – include health insurance with no lifetime maximum. Walmart also offers a 401(k) plan and profit sharing contributions, whether an associate contributes or not, store discount cards, company performance-based bonuses, stock purchase program and life insurance

* Average wage taken July 2010. See www.walmartstores.com for details.

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