The reaction by the market – while not what we’d hoped – was not entirely surprising. We're making significant investments in our people and technology. These investments are critical to our current and future success as a company. Simply put, it’s the right thing to do.
For the first time we shared a three-year growth plan that includes financial metrics and goals. We project our sales growth over the next three years will be $45 – 60 billion. Think about that. That’s like adding last year’s combined annual revenues of Netflix, eBay, Whole Foods, and Starbucks to our top line.
Our growth plan is the roadmap we will follow to win through FY19. It focuses on customers who shop with us not only in stores, but online too. These shoppers spend more and shop more frequently and they are the kind of customers everyone is chasing. Good news is we already have a relationship with many of them.
At its core, our growth plan has one goal: Walmart will be the first to deliver a seamless shopping experience at scale. No matter how you choose to shop with us, it will be fast and easy.
We will do this by winning with our stores, deepening our digital relationship with our customers and adding critical capabilities necessary to drive growth. We will also continue to lean heavily on the strategic work already underway that strengthens our business:
- Delivering value
- Providing convenience
- Being great merchants, particularly in fresh food and health and wellness
- Focusing on our key geographies of North America and China
- Appealing to customers in a blend of income levels
And we will continue investing in our people. Today we shared details around the $1.5 billion investment we will make next year to bring the wage for current associates to at least $10 in the U.S. The return from the initial investment of more than $1 billion we made earlier this year is encouraging. We have seen associate engagement and customer satisfaction scores increase dramatically over the past eight months and comp sales are increasing. Bottom line - it's working.
We’re also investing in technology to improve our customers’ experience. In fact, you can see how our stores are transforming already with our first redesigned Supercenter and Neighborhood Market, both in Rogers, Arkansas. These investments are critical to our future and core to our strategy.
There are so many reasons to be optimistic about our future. We are uniquely positioned to win the future of retail. Our 2.2 million associates make the difference every day and that’s an advantage no one else can match. We run our company well today, which allows us to invest for tomorrow. And we’re making the right moves to give customers, like Carla below, what they want, in ways that work with their lives. These steps aren’t always easy, but they are building on our strengths and will deliver a seamless shopping experience for 260 million customers around the world.
You can find a complete replay and supporting materials from our Annual Meeting for the Investment Community here.