Walmart plans to open a fulfillment center near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport to process online orders, and the retailer will hire 400 people.
The 1.2-million-square-foot facility will be at the Majestic Airport Center IV Industrial Park in Union City at South Fulton Parkway and Stonewall Tell Road, about six miles from the Atlanta airport. The center is scheduled to open in mid-2015.
The retailer also said Wednesday it plans a fulfillment center of equal size in Bethlehem, Pa.
The centers reflect the world’s largest retailer’s plans to invest more heavily in its e-commerce business and less in bricks-and-mortar stores.
Spokesperson Ravi Jariwala said the fulfillment centers will allow Walmart to ship online orders more quickly and cost-effectively to homes or to stores for customer pickup.
The company told analysts Wednesday it will spend between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion next year on e-commerce and digital initiatives, up from $1 billion this year.
At the same time, Walmart warned overall sales this year will be lower than earlier projections given the “tough” retail environment, a revised outlook that helped spook Wall Street investors.
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