Walmart Shutters Store No. 8 Innovation Incubator

Walmart will reportedly shut down its Store No. 8 innovation unit, according to the Wall Street Journal and other media outlets, as the retailer seeks to cut costs and find new ways to develop and test new ideas.

The division, which was formed in 2017 following Walmart’s acquisition of Jet.com, has been the incubator for initiatives including shopping via text message and a recently released software development kit (SDK) to make it easier to integrate Walmart commerce into games and apps. Additionally, Store No. 8 has been heavily involved in the retailer’s metaverse ventures, including immersive experiences on the Roblox platform.

The rationale, according to a staff memo from Walmart CFO John David Rainey viewed by the WSJ, is that the retailer has “graduated capabilities from this operating approach that are now fully embedded in our organization.” He noted that almost 300 Store No. 8 workers have moved on to other internal jobs since its founding, and added that “the responsibility to shape the future of retail is now shared by all segments.”

The Store No. 8 web page is still active. At press time no information about a shutdown timeline or the fate of Store No. 8 employees was available.