Walmart is now granting sellers on its online marketplace access to its “port-to-door” ocean freight network, giving them an end-to-end shipping experience directly from China to their U.S. consumer.

Currently, the Walmart Cross Border service is available for partner sellers that manufacture or source their goods in China and can deliver full container loads to designated U.S. ports. Walmart offers the service from three of the country’s largest ports—Yantian, Shanghai and Ningbo.

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Once containers are shipped from the origin ports in China and clear U.S. customs, Walmart transports the inventory to its fulfillment centers. Standard-sized inventory will be distributed across the country to fulfillment centers close to customers, while oversized inventory will be fulfilled directly from the destination facility.

Scott Humanek, senior director of Walmart’s global inbound program, announced the Cross Border program on a LinkedIn post on Aug. 8. That program is focused on enabling sellers leveraging Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS) and Marketplace to move products from the factory of origin to Walmart’s domestic logistics network. Under the WFS program, sellers can offer two-day delivery guarantees for all items they sell.

“As part of that release, we became discoverable and generally available to all WFS sellers,” Humanek said in the post. “We couldn’t be more excited to help drive value, convenience, speed and reliability for ocean transportation. Our pilot exceeded our expectations in terms of feedback and volumes.”

It is unclear when the pilot initially started, or how many sellers have been part of the program. The company has not revealed if it plans to expand the program outside of China.

Sourcing Journal reached out to Humanek.

Walmart’s move has been a few years in the making, starting during the Covid-19 pandemic, with the Bentonville behemoth first chartering vessels back in mid-2021 to avoid out-of-stocks in the third and fourth quarters as e-commerce orders ballooned.

The company then registered a subsidiary with the Federal Maritime Commission in 2022 called WMSC Logistics Services, LLC. The subsidiary has been providing non-vessel operating common carrier (NVOCC) ocean services since October 2023, when it processed its first shipment into the U.S.

According to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence’s supply chain research division Panjiva, the Walmart-owned carrier has processed 893 total shipments between October 2023 and July 2024, totaling 1,988 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in the time frame. The service uses just two U.S. ports—the San Pedro Bay Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.

The Panjiva data says 78 businesses have thus far shipped goods via Walmart’s service.

With global supply chain congestion kicking heavily into gear throughout 2024 in a mimicry of the 2021-2022 landscape, and more retailers pulling product forward in the summer, Walmart is filling a need for more smaller businesses that would likely struggle to get cargo space from major ocean carriers.

Additionally, these SMBs often have to secure space via the spot rate market because they aren’t typically bringing in enough freight to justify a longer-term pricing model. But with the WCB program, Marketplace sellers would be able to leverage the contract rates Walmart negotiates, giving them a more stable option than hopping on a one-month or three-month spot deal.

Sellers using the service get access to Walmart’s negotiated ocean freight rates for 20-foot, 40-foot and 45-foot high cube containers.

The program is designed for convenience, with the retail giant also including options for customs clearance support from the company’s preferred customs broker.

Within Walmart’s Seller Center portal, sellers can estimate the cost of inbound ocean freight shipments, book a shipment 10 days prior to the expected cargo ready date, print WFS box labels after booking a shipment and view inventory shipment statuses.

Under normal market conditions, Walmart estimates it will take 27 to 38 calendar days from the cargo ready date to when the first items are available to sell. This estimate includes 14 days from booking date to departure from origin, 19 days on the water and five days in the Port of Los Angeles. After that, cargo should spend two days for receiving at the inbound consolidation center and five days for onward placement at WFS facilities throughout the U.S.

The latest extension of Walmart’s marketplace and WFS comes as the company keeps looking to add new services that compete with Amazon, attract more third-party brands and reach new buyers.

Walmart reports earnings Thursday morning.