Opportunity
A fast-growing consumer packaged goods (CPG) brand with a culturally authentic and highly differentiated product secured an exciting opportunity: a Walmart buyer who not only loved their offering but was actively championing their placement on shelves. The buyer was responsive, supportive, and unusually engaged—an ideal scenario by most standards.
But what quickly became clear was this: Even a great product with a strong buyer advocate doesn’t guarantee success at Walmart. Behind every shelf placement lies a maze of compliance, data, logistics, and systems readiness. And this brand was not as ready as they believed.
Goals
- Launch products successfully in Walmart stores
- Navigate Walmart’s onboarding and compliance systems in as few delays as possible
- Establish scalable, compliant logistics to support long-term retail success
Challenges
Despite the green light from the merchant team, the brand encountered multiple foundational issues that, if unresolved, would have delayed or even jeopardized the launch:
❌ Missing EDI Setup
Without Electronic Data Interchange (EDI), the brand could not invoice and get paid for the products they shipped to Walmart.
Potential Fallout: Complete breakdown in order flow, risking both the initial launch and replenishment.
❌ Incorrect Item Alignment
The brand’s products were set up with alignment codes that routed POs to the wrong distribution centers—grocery DCs instead of general merchandise or regional ones.
Potential Fallout: Misdirected inventory, product rejections, or missed delivery windows.
❌ Unverified Ship Point
A ship point had been set up in Walmart’s Supplier One portal—but it wasn’t registered in the Transportation Portal, which governs actual freight pickups.
Potential Fallout: Walmart carriers would not recognize or pick up from the location. Worse, everyone initially believed it was correctly configured—until it wasn’t.
❌ Freight Terms Misconfiguration
Freight terms were mistakenly listed as “collect” even though neither the supplier nor Walmart was set up to accommodate this. This mismatch risked failed pickups, potential compliance fines, and significant damage to early performance metrics. Compounding the issue was Walmart’s mandatory 45-day lead time required to validate new ship points—a process that occurs between the ship point creation and transportation phases. Given the immediate need to ship in order to meet the scheduled in-store feature date, adhering to this lead time would have resulted in missed delivery windows and jeopardized the product launch timeline.
Potential Fallout: Missed pickup appointments, shipment failure, and loss of buyer confidence.
Solution
The brand partnered with 8th & Walton to untangle the growing web of challenges—and fast. With the clocktime ticking, the launch required expert triage and intervention across multiple Walmart systems.
🛠 EDI Enablement
We guided the brand through selection, setup, and testing of an EDI provider, ensuring their systems could process POs within Walmart’s framework. This required not just technical expertise but hands-on coordination with Walmart’s data exchange protocols.
🧩 Data Validation and Alignment Correction
Our team audited item setup across platforms, pinpointed misaligned codes, and helped cancel and reissue affected POs. This involved multiple layers of item maintenance, coordination with Walmart’s merchandising and replenishment teams, and precise timing to avoid disrupting flow.
🚚 Ship Point Setup and Escalation
Identifying the disconnect between Supplier One and the Transportation Portal, we worked with both the client and Walmart to initiate ship point validation. But the normal process would take 45 days—time the brand didn’t have.
So we activated our network of logistics partners, escalated internally, and secured a highly unusual rush onboarding with RJW Logistics. This involved expedited contracts, special approvals, and out-of-scope transportation arrangements.
💼 Freight Terms and PO Strategy
We helped the brand reclassify their POs from collect to prepaid—and in a rare move, Walmart approved the change and regenerated POs without penalizing the supplier. We also coached the brand through future-proofing freight classifications.
💰 Significant Investment in Acceleration
To keep the launch on track, the brand made the strategic decision to invest heavily in acceleration:
- They paid for full-truckload rush shipments—even when the trucks weren’t full
- They funded expedited onboarding with third-party logistics
- They absorbed costs typically avoided with more lead time
This financial commitment—while significant—enabled them to meet Walmart’s expectations and keep their opportunity alive. It was a conscious tradeoff: speed and compliance in exchange for upfront investment.
Results
With 8th & Walton’s expertise and the brand’s willingness to invest and move quickly, they:
✅ Followed the most direct, compliant path to onboarding
✅ Resolved multiple high-risk operational issues in time
✅ Successfully launched in Walmart stores—with product flowing through systems, shelf space secured, and replenishment cycles intact
Key Takeaways
🔑 A Buyer’s Enthusiasm Isn’t a Guarantee
Even the most supportive merchant can’t override operational missteps. Systems, compliance, and data alignment must be in place—or the launch stalls.
🔑 Speed Comes at a Price
Compressed timelines are possible, but they carry real costs—both financial and organizational. Suppliers should plan for flexibility.
🔑 Expert Guidance Prevents Expensive Errors
Walmart’s processes are nuanced. Our ability to anticipate problems, escalate issues, and coordinate across departments saved time, money, and the launch itself.
🔑 Empowered Suppliers Succeed Faster
The brand’s internal champion was critical. They asked hard questions, stayed persistent, and didn’t wait for problems to surface. That mindset, combined with expert support, made the difference.
