Listing on Walmart.com

Though many inventors would like to be in a Wal-Mart store, do   not overlook possibilities of Wal-Mart.com and other Wal-Mart ecommerce sites. They may be easier to get on if you are a smaller vendor and success on the site is a big plus in building market momentum.

Wal-Mart.com

1. Go to the web page:  http://walmartstores.com/Suppliers/
2. Click on Applying to be a Supplier.
3. Check first on supplier requirements, these requirements are basic for selling to most websites and retail stores so be sure you meet them before applying.
4. Focus first on the Marketplace.
5. Go down near the bottom of the page and click on Request to Sell.

Information You Must Have

• US Business Tax ID (SSN not accepted)
• W9 or W8 and EIN Verification Letter from the Department of Treasury that verifies your US business address or place of physical operations
• Address or place of physical operations
• US Business address
• Planned integration method for your product catalog (bulk upload, API, solution provider)
• Primary product categories, catalog size and related information (e.g. total SKUs you will be selling on Walmart.com initially with verified UPC information, and used vs. refurbished etc.)

Your UPC codes and Information are Key

What is a Universal Product Code (UPC)?

A UPC, short for universal product code, is a type of code printed on retail product packaging to aid in identifying a particular item. It consists of two parts – the machine-readable barcode, which is a series of unique black bars, and the unique 12-digit number beneath it.

The purpose of UPCs is to make it easy to identify product features, such as the brand name, item, size, and color, when an item is scanned at checkout. In fact, that’s why they were created in the first place – to speed up the checkout process at grocery stores. UPCs are also helpful in tracking inventory within a store or warehouse.

To obtain a UPC for use on a product a company has to first apply to become part of the system. GS1 US, the Global Standards Organization, formerly known as the Uniform Code Council, manages the assigning of UPCs within the US.

Parts of a UPC

After paying a fee to join, GS1 assigns a 6-digit manufacturer identification number, which becomes the first six digits in the UPC on all the company’s products. That number identifies the particular manufacturer of the item.

The next five digits of the UPC is called an item number. It refers to the actual product itself. Within each company is a person responsible for issuing item numbers, to ensure that the same number isn’t used more than once and that old numbers referring to discontinued products are phased out.

Many consumer products have several variations, based on, for example, size, flavor, or color. Each variety requires its own item number. So a box of 24 one-inch nails has a different item number than a box of 24 two-inch nails, or a box of 50 one-inch nails.

The last digit in the 12-digit UPC is called the check digit. It is the product of several calculations – adding and multiplying several digits in the code – to confirm to the checkout scanner that the UPC is valid. If the check digit code is incorrect, the UPC won’t scan properly.