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Walmart delves into ‘shoppertainment’ livestream video

Retail media arm Walmart Connect enlists immersive video platform Firework

Russell Redman

September 20, 2022

3 Min Read
Walmart-Firework shoppable livestream videos-Mega Beauty Event-Sept2022.png
Walmart Connect piloted Firework’s livestream video solution last week at Walmart’s Mega Beauty Event with brand partners Johnson & Johnson, L’Oreal, Procter & Gamble and Unilever.Walmart

Retail giant Walmart aims to leverage livestream video to create “shoppable” visual content under a partnership with immersive video specialist Firework.

Plans call for Walmart Connect, a closed-loop omnichannel media business of Walmart, to bring short-form, social media-style videos with direct shopping functionality to its digital properties and make them available to advertisers, San Mateo, Calif.-based Firework said Tuesday.

The livestream video program is slated to launch this month. A retail media platform, Walmart Connect links advertisers with Walmart customers shopping online, in-store or off-site and provides visibility into campaign performance for brick-and-mortar and digital sales. 

Walmart-Firework livestream video-Sheamoisture-Walmart Mega Beauty Event-Spet2022.png

The Firework live commerce videos include direct shopping capability, such as in this video spot for Unilever's SheaMoisture brand in the recent Walmart Mega Beauty Event.

“Video and livestream commerce truly works when you put the customer at the center of the experience — and that's what we're doing here,” according to Rich Lehrfeld, senior vice president and general manager for Walmart Connect. “Our partnership with Firework further underscores how Walmart Connect is committed to evolving our business and expanding our offerings to actively stay ahead of what advertisers need. We’re proud to be able to serve Walmart customers with engaging experiences in the places they already love to shop.”

Firework noted that, through the partnership, Walmart Connect will support the entire customer journey by blending shopping steps from product discovery to the final purchase into one immersive experience. The premium video commerce experience also will provide an insight-rich environment for Walmart Connect and advertisers as well as the capacity for organic community growth outside social networks.

Related:The Fresh Market gets results from ‘shoppable’ videos

Walmart Connect piloted Firework’s solution last week in launching a live shopping experience for Walmart’s Mega Beauty Event with brand partners Johnson & Johnson, L’Oreal, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Running Sept. 13 to 16, the event featured four livestreams and plus replays and shoppable videos for the showcased products, Firework reported.

“Walmart Connect has created an omnichannel ecosystem based on customer centricity, and we couldn’t be more excited to partner with them to power livestream and premium shoppable video experiences on their site,” commented Jason Holland, chief business officer at Firework. “We’ll not only make shoppable and livestream video more deeply embedded in their omnichannel approach, we’ll also provide a commerce media experience for their customers in-store and across the web.”

Firework’s platform enables users to create, host and curate short-form and livestream video on any website — in turn, allowing any retailer, direct-to-consumer brand, media publisher or business to own, engage and monetize a community around short-form video, the company said. The “swipeable” interactive technology lets consumers engage directly with brand and product videos, while on-site hosting gives businesses direct access to consumer data and monetization opportunities from the shoppable video content. Retailers, too, can sell “digital shelf space” — in the form of video ads — to brands that they carry.

Related:Lightbox launches digital video grocery network

Other grocery retailers employing Firework’s so-called “shoppertainment” technology include Albertsons Cos. and The Fresh Market. Firework has said that its short-form, shoppable videos generate 30% add-to-cart rates, compared with an industry standard of less than 8%, and live shopping on a website boosts purchase completion fourfold.

Retailers have increasing sought to boost customer engagement via digital channels — especially through video — to drive shopper interest and purchases. Citing research from eMarketer, Firework noted that U.S. retail e-commerce sales jumped over 36% in 2020 and have continued to grow, projected to top the $1 trillion mark in 2022. The technology firm added that consumers who turned to online shopping during the pandemic are still doing so, and live shopping trends popular in Asian markets are gaining traction in the United States as short-form video becomes part of the shopping continuum. 

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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