Walmart in-store, 1P, 3P, Marketplace... what does it all mean?

Easily the #1 questions I get each day so I figured it would be the best first-blog post.

Everyone knows that Walmart is a brick-and-mortar giant with 4,800+ stores in the US but with online shopping continuing to grow, there are now multiple channels to sell at/with Walmart.

In-store: physical products sit on physical shelves and are managed by the in-store merchant team

1P: I describe this as Walmart's "virtual shelf" - it is a way for Walmart to extend their "shelf space" utilizing their massive dotcom presence. Products sold via 1P are sold on Walmart dotcom, priced as they would be in store, managed by the in-store teams but they do not sit on a shelf and can only be purchased online.

3P: Aka: marketplace. This is Walmart's answer to that-other-ecommerce-site. Anyone can sell on Walmart Marketplace and it is a phenomenal way to build a shopper base, brand awareness and demonstrate success operating in the Walmart ecosystem. Brands have control of pricing and can opt to utilize Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS) to make shipping product easier to manage.

I'm working on another post about the "3P to 1P pathway"... check back soon!

So, is one route "better" than the other? My response is a shameless plug -- it depends on the brand and the team you've built or partnered with to manage the business. Our team at ABS prides ourselves on being able to strategically build and scale brands at Walmart utilizing in-store, 1P & 3P opportunities.