We may be only a few days into autumn, but Walmart, like many other retailers, already has its eyes on the holidays.
In a recent presentation at Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference, David Guggina, President and CEO of Walmart U.S., said the chain has already been working on its seasonal lineup.
Value-conscious shoppers, he noted, will be especially pleased with what’s in store.
A new holiday lineup is taking shape at Walmart
When asked about Walmart’s plans for the 2026 holiday season, Guggina said the retailer had been working on curating its seasonal assortment, with an emphasis on new products and sharp price points.
“We recently had our holiday meeting,” he said. “The team is ready. We’re ready to drive everyday low cost so that we can reinvest in the price and experience.”
“Our merchants came with innovation. They came with new items, and they came with sharp price points,” he continued.
While Guggina didn’t give particular details about the types of items and brand partnerships shoppers can expect to see in the coming months, he emphasized that the retailer intends to bring the same combination of assortment, value, and convenience that helped its back-to-school business.
“We’re happy with how back-to-school has performed,” he said. “We just had great assortment at great value and fantastic convenience, and that resonated with customers.”
Looking to the next season, the Walmart U.S. CEO says shoppers should expect similar deals.
“The consumer wants to save money and the consumer wants to save time, and we’re going to allow them to do both of those things,” he said.
Walmart is making value a bigger priority
Walmart’s wallet-friendly holiday strategy isn’t coming out of nowhere.
Earlier this year, the retailer pledged that it would be reinvesting a portion of its $2.9 billion tariff refund into price cuts and rollbacks on thousands of grocery and essential items.
“We took those [tariff] funds and we reinvested in price and experience,” Guggina said at the September conference. “And with regards to price… there’s really 2 ways that we utilize the funds. One is with rollbacks. So we had 11,200 rollbacks within the U.S. business. And another way is not taking price increases when we see the cost of goods come up, things like transportation and fuel costs, which have escalated.”
This emphasis on value has helped Walmart maintain its position of preference with increasingly strained consumers.
“Right now, the U.S. consumer is resilient,” Guggina said. “They’re being very intentional with their dollars, and they’re also looking for value. And that’s why the Walmart value proposition is resonating today. We focus on low prices, and we focus on convenience.”
Holiday shoppers are watching their wallets
Walmart’s emphasis on value comes at an important time for holiday shoppers.
Deloitte is predicting that holiday sales will total between $1.7 and $1.71 trillion in 2026, marking a 4% to 4.8% increase year-over-year.
While that growth is a positive sign for many retailers, it doesn’t necessarily mean that consumers will be spending as freely as they once did.
“Consumers continue to place importance on making the holidays special for their friends and families, while also making deliberate choices about how they spend,” Natalie Martini, Deloitte’s US Retail & Consumer Products Sector Leader, said in a statement.
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“As they look to get more out of their dollars, we continue to see value-seeking behaviors across income levels, including switching among brands and retailers and using promotions to manage spending,” she continued. “These behaviors are expected to shape how consumers approach holiday shopping this season.”
Another study from Invoice Home and Censuswide found that while 49% of shoppers won’t let rising costs deter them from buying holiday gifts, 16% plan to cut back on essentials in order to afford them, and 20% plan to get a second job.
Taken together, the data presents a relatively clear message for retailers: holiday shoppers are still spending, but they’re looking harder for value.
With what we know of its seasonal strategy, Walmart is trying to position itself as the destination for those value-conscious shoppers.
“There is a great opportunity right now to go after market share, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” Guggina said. “We’re playing offense.”