Amazon remains the most dominant force in ecommerce today, but Walmart is not going to just sit on the virtual sidelines.
The retailer is poised to become a real threat to Amazon, with its online sale growing a whopping 63 percent during the first quarter of 2017.
Industry watchers suggest that an improved mobile app and programs like free two-day shipping (as well as lowering the minimum purchase total to receive the free shipping offer) may be behind the phenomenal uptick in growth, but is that all that's going on?
While Walmart may be improving its management of the digital space, it is also likely (finally) benefiting from the numerous acquisitions it has made, including Modcloth and Moosejaw. The big box retailer is also reportedly in talks to buy men's retailer Bonobos for $300 million.
These all follow the company's $3.3 billion acquisition of Jet.com last year. When coupled with its massive offline footprint, Amazon may not be the only powerful force in the ecommerce industry.
"Inside the company, we can see that we're moving faster to combine our digital and physical assets to make shopping more enjoyable and faster for customers, but we also see plenty of room to improve," CEO Doug McMillon said during the company's quarterly conference call.
"We need to scale our ecommerce business further and see some additional strength in our store comps to deliver the results we know we're capable of -- so that's what we're focused on."
