Consumer Alert: Walmart looking to attract more affluent shoppers

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Where do you buy your blue jeans? Would you look for $50 Calvin Klein jeans at Walmart? How about a $300 cozy swivel chair? That’s where you’ll turn for higher-end style if Walmart gets its way.

News10NBC’s Deanna Dewberry would love to be a fly on the wall at the Walmart investor’s conference. Unfortunately, she wasn’t invited. but she’s been reading about it.

The vice president of apparel recently told investors the king of the bargain basement is undergoing an image make-over.

That’s right — Walmart not only wants to be the place you go for milk and mayonnaise, it also wants to be the place you buy your dress shirts, designer jeans, and fashionable home goods.

The vice-president of apparel revealed the retail giant is renovating 700 stores to the tune of $5.7 billion. It’s all in the hopes of attracting more affluent shoppers. 

Walmart is banking on the hope that consumers keep spending.

Retail sales numbers for May were released Thursday showing that spending grew 0.3% in May — more than analysts expected.

And consumers spent 4% more than last year.

June looks even more promising as summer travel kicks off and gas prices remain far lower than last year. Even as we continue to spend, prices are falling.

As Deanna told you this week, the inflation numbers show that prices are cooling and will likely continue to cool throughout the summer.

While that’s good news for the economy, it’s bad news for seniors.

Their social security cost of living adjustment, or “COLA” is the average of consumer costs calculated in the months of July, August, and September. 

Analysts say those numbers likely will not reflect the totality of the enormous cost increases seniors and others on fixed incomes have suffered since 2021.

Of course News10NBC will continue to follow this closely for you.