In a huge move to compete with Amazon, Walmart is acquiring Jet.com for a total value of $3.3 billion.
Walmart has been known to make some big moves in the business world, and they were back at it again this week.
On Monday, the retail giant announced a massive new acquisition by acquiring Jet.com. Walmart made the announcement on Monday, with the cost of the purchase of the digital retail website coming in at $3.3 billion with $3 billion in cash and $300 million in stock.
Jet.com had become a fast-rising brand in the online retail space thanks to its ability to lower prices through bulk purchases. By adding more items to a shopping cart, customers could pay less per item and have all of their products shipped in one box from a nearby vendor.
“Walmart.com will grow faster, the seamless shopping experience we’re pursuing will happen quicker, and we’ll enable the Jet brand to be even more successful in a shorter period of time,” Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement.
The acquisition is clearly a decision by Walmart to try and compete more directly with Amazon, the online retail goliath. Walmart has continually struggled to keep up with Amazon in the online marketplace, and they are hoping that acquiring an online user base like Jet will allow them to become a more legitimate contender.
However, only time will tell whether or not this acquisition will allow Walmart to start being a more direct competitor in the online retail marketplace, or at least allow them to take any market share away from Amazon.
