Store brings new concept, 90 new jobs and local favorites to the community
SEARCY, Ark., Jan. 31, 2013 – The first Walmart Neighborhood Market will open in Searcy on Wednesday, Feb. 13. The new store, located at 1330 Beebe Capps Expressway, will provide residents of Searcy with a convenient location to pick up all their grocery needs, including fresh produce.
“We were very pleased to learn several months ago that Walmart planned to open a Walmart Neighborhood Market in Searcy," said Buck Layne, president of the Searcy Regional Chamber of Commerce. "The store will be an attractive addition to the west side of town and the creation of 90 new jobs consisting of full-and part-time associates, including supervisory positions is great news for the region. We are excited to welcome store manager, Keith Breckenridge and the Walmart Neighborhood Market to our community.”
Walmart Neighborhood Market Format
The first Neighborhood Market opened in 1998, and today there are nearly 230 Walmart Neighborhood Market stores nationwide. The stores offer quick and convenient shopping for groceries, pharmacy items and general merchandise.
New Searcy Store
The new store is tailored for the Searcy community, featuring a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, fresh cakes and bread, a selection of Yarnell’s Ice Cream products, as well as meats, cheeses and prepared foods. The deli will feature a Grab-and-Go section with rotisserie chicken, fresh-baked pizza and standard deli sides. In addition to the fresh produce, bakery and deli items, the store will carry a full line of groceries, including frozen foods, meat and dairy products and organic items.
Shoppers will also appreciate the convenience of the store’s pharmacy, along with a full selection of health-related products and a health and beauty area. Additional areas include stationery, paper goods, pet products and hardware items. Customers can also print their own digital photos at the store. The store will be open 6 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week.
The store will offer Site-to-Store, a free service that allows customers to ship online orders from www.walmart.com free to any Walmart store for pickup.
All Walmart stores and Neighborhood Markets participate in the Pay with Cash program. This allows customers to order online at Walmart.com and pay for the items with cash at all stores in the U.S. Walmart is the first major retailer to offer online purchases without the need for banking services or a credit, debit or prepaid card.
Opening Creates 90 Jobs
Approximately 90 part- and full-time jobs will be created with the new store opening. Breckenridge began his Walmart career in 1986 at a store in West Little Rock as an hourly associate. After that, he worked in numerous positions throughout central Arkansas as shoe district manager, shoe/jewelry district manager and apparel/home lines merchandiser, which were all field management supervisory positions. Beginning four years ago, Breckenridge went back into operations at the store level and was a shift manager at a store in Conway. He was most recently a store manager in Sherwood. Eleven of the new Walmart Neighborhood Market associates have worked for Walmart for more than 10 years.
“Speaking for the associates at the Searcy Walmart Neighborhood Market, we are so excited to be a part of this community,” said Breckenridge. “We look forward to serving the residents of Searcy and White County, giving them a great shopping experience along with providing them everyday low prices.”
Ribbon-Cutting Celebration at 7:30 a.m., Feb. 13
The store will host a grand-opening celebration at 7:30 a.m., Wednesday, Feb. 13. Store associates and local dignitaries will participate in a brief ceremony, followed by a ribbon cutting where the doors to the new store will be opened to the public.
Throughout grand-opening day, members of the Searcy community are invited to come by the store to enjoy product samplings, giveaways and various entertainment events.
Community Groups Benefit from Grand-Opening Grants
The grand-opening celebration includes a variety of grants from Walmart and the Walmart Foundation to local community groups. Those groups include White County Special Olympics, White County Area Agency on Aging and Sunshine School.
About Walmart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online, and through their mobile devices. Each week, more than 200 million customers and members visit our 10,400 stores under 69 banners in 27 countries and e-commerce websites in 10 countries. With fiscal year 2012 sales of approximately $444 billion, Walmart employs more than 2.2 million associates worldwide. Walmart continues to be a leader in sustainability, corporate philanthropy and employment opportunity. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting http://corporate.walmart.com, on Facebook at http://facebook.com/walmart and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/walmartnewsroom. Online merchandise sales are available at http://www.walmart.com and http://www.samsclub.com.
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