PlantX Life (VEGA.C) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to launch as a Seller on Walmart’s ecommerce platform, Walmart Canada Marketplace.
“Being invited and approved to join Walmart Canada Marketplace is an amazing feat that further demonstrates the scalability of the platform and demand for the products of PlantX…This collaboration redefines PlantX’s potential as a plant-based leader and illustrates how our results-driven expansion efforts continue to broaden our horizons,” said Sean Dollinger, PlantX Founder.
Walmart Canada Marketplace was launched in 2009 and provides retailers with a platform to offer consumers their products. This latest agreement will verify PlantX as one such retailer, which will allow the Company to take advantage of Walmart Canada Marketplace’s digital marketing services and customer base. It goes without saying that Walmart is a titan in the grocery industry, operating a chain of 410 stores throughout Canada and serving more than 1.2 million customers a day. With this in mind, PlantX now has a spot on same stage as one of the most influential brands in Canada.
However, the grocery and retail industry in Canada underwent significant changes in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the frequency of online grocery shopping grew exponentially, with Canadian online sales spiking by 177%. As a whole, retails sales of food and beverages amounted to almost $130 billion in 2019 in Canada, and the market’s value is projected to reach $154.3 billion by 2021. According to Mintel, almost 37% of Canadians have switched to online grocery shopping, marking an increase of 57% in overall digitization of grocery sales.
With regards to Walmart in particular, the company saw its ecommerce sales increase by 229% during the pandemic. Furthermore, Walmart’s Canadian flagship online store is visited by 600,000 customers daily. Through this latest agreement, PlantX will be authorized to sell products to Walmart’s expansive customer base as a verified Seller. PlantX plans to initially sell grocery and pantry items from various brands including Simply Organic, Made in Nature, Cadia, and Nutiva, with potential opportunities to diversify its product offerings in the future.
Sick of statistics? Well, here’s some more! Plant-based food sales increase twice as fast as overall food sales in 2020. More specifically, plant-based food sales grew 27% in the last year and 43% over the past two years to reach $7 billion. Furthermore, the plant-based marketing is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.9% and is expected to reach a market value of $74.2 billion by 2027. With this in mind, PlantX is currently in the midst of expanding its plant-based footprint in Canada, having recently opened its first brick-and-mortar location in Squamish, BC. Although some investors are skeptical of PlantX’s decision to open up shop in Squamish, the Company’s latest agreement with Walmart may help counteract these concerns.
PlantX’s share price opened at $0.57 and is currently trading at $0.57 as of 11:36AM ET. This indicates that there has not been any significant change following the news.
