Wal-Mart bets on in-store pickup

Wal-Mart’s e-commerce store won’t be offering free unlimited shipping this holiday season, encouraging shoppers instead to buy items online and pick them up at one of its stores.

Customers who spend less than $50 on Walmart.com will either have to pay for shipping or arrange to have their items sent to a store, Wal-Mart said.

The move is a gamble that Wal-Mart can leverage its massive brick-and-retail chain in its fight with Amazon.com. Wal- Mart also is adopting a service in which customers check in with their smartphones when they arrive at the store, alerting the staff and expediting the buying process.

Bloomberg News

This story was originally published October 29, 2015 at 2:55 PM with the headline "Wal-Mart bets on in-store pickup."