Walmart’s “back-to-life” quarter: Why America's #1 retailer is a proxy for the consumer economy
![_Nothing like the smell of freshly shaved pencils [GoodLifeStudio/E+ via GettyImages]_](https://cdn.robinhood.com/static_content/mwphzyq69oso/en-US/assets/files/6MUeP5seUL5YFwXEDwMY7l_1_GettyImages-1145419145.jpg)
To the window... to the Walmart. The retail giant topped earnings estimates last quarter as people flocked to its stores for back-to-school supplies and groceries — Walmart's literal bread and butter. US sales jumped 5% from last year to a casual $141B.
- Back-to-school: Kids who haven't seen their fifth-grade classmate IRL since third-grade stocked up on Frozen backpacks, Pokémon planners, and sparkly erasers.
- Back-to-life: Walmart says customers snagged items like luggage, party supplies, and clothes as they were “coming out of hibernation.”
- Ads to match: Walmart's advertising revenue in the US nearly doubled (it sells ads on its website and app).
Splurging on mechanical pencils... In the same period last year, bulky stimulus checks lifted sales despite Covid concerns — still, Walmart managed to beat those sales this year. That could partly be thanks to a "secret stimulus" that dropped before Walmart's latest quarter ended.
- Kid allowance: On July 15, the US government started sending US parents $300 per month for each child they have as part of a boosted child tax credit.
- Like stimulus checks, these child tax checks will likely continue to boost spending — especially at fam-faves like Walmart, Costco, and Target.
Walmart is a proxy for US consumers... and their mood. Walmart is America’s largest retailer — and 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of one of its stores (wild). In March of last year, Walmart shoppers were stocking up on TP and canned foods. Now, they're splurging on suitcases, backpacks, and skirts. And despite surging Delta cases, Walmart says it hasn't seen a change in shopping patterns — or a return to hoarding. We’ll see if that changes as the Delta variant surges.