Shoppers are seen wearing masks while shopping at a Walmart store in Bradford, Pennsylvania, July 20, 2020.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
Walmart Chief Customer Officer Janey Whiteside said Tuesday that many of its shoppers don’t expect the economy to quickly bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic.
Almost half of customers surveyed in November told Walmart that they were worried about the current health of the economy, she said when speaking at the virtual National Retail Federation conference. She said 40% said they didn’t expect “any kind of speedy recovery.”
“Our core Walmart customer is absolutely not immune to the economic slowdown, in fact may even be disproportionately impacted,” she said, noting that the pandemic has bifurcated society as it’s hit some industries like hospitality and not others.
Walmart’s sales and earnings have risen during the pandemic, as customers have turned to its more than 4,700 U.S. stores and its website for groceries, hair color, puzzles and more. Its
