Walmart leans into fashion

Walmart is known for low prices, blue vests and cavernous suburban stores — not exactly stomping grounds for high fashion. But the store, once again, is trying to turn that around. Its pop-up shop at New York Fashion Week this year is just one way the big box store is leaning into fashion.

​When it comes to affordable options this fall fashion cycle, the TikTok influencers have spoken:

“If you haven’t heard, Walmart is slaying the game.” “I don’t think you’re ready for this Walmart haul. Do you see this?” “I did some damage at Walmart and I’m going to show you guys what I got.”

Whether it’s denim dresses, Birkenstock dupes or cargo sweatpants, Walmart is edging into Target and H&M territory. Analyst Jessica Ramírez with Jane Hali & Associates said that over the last year she’s seen improvement in the store’s private labels.

​“It’s looked much more trend-focused than it has before,” said Ramírez.

It’s part of the retailer’s strategy as inflation has pushed a higher-income consumer into their stores who come in for staples like milk and eggs.

“If it’s all sitting in the same place, and you have that consumer who has that spare change to spend, and the product is nice, they will pick it up,” Ramírez said.

​It’s a good opportunity for growth for Walmart, according to Katherine Black, an analyst at Kearney.

“You can certainly see some higher profit margins in a lot of apparel categories,” she said. “And most importantly, any time you add items into a basket, it’s going to improve profitability for the store.”

​But retail consultant Mark Cohen is skeptical: “This is an age old story.” Walmart has tried fashion before and it just hasn’t stuck, he said.

“You have to be somewhat cynical about their ability to sustain the ride necessary to create fashion assortments that customers will find appealing,” he said. “The problem, of course, is you have to do it and do it again and again and again in thousands and thousands of stores.”

And that goes beyond the clothing itself — Walmart still trails behind stores like Target in how it presents its clothing to customers in an appealing way, Cohen added.