To Court Big Brands, Walmart Throws Some Smaller Merchants Under the Bus

For nearly 25 years, Tracey Shelley, an online merchant who sells products like Olay moisturizer, Coppertone sunscreen and Dr. Squatch deodorant, operated mainly on Amazon’s marketplace. But in the past few years, Shelley said she shifted nearly half her business to Walmart, as the retailer lobbied online sellers to sell on its site. In its effort to compete with Amazon, Walmart pitched lower fees and more straightforward policies, she said.

In recent weeks, however, Walmart has suddenly become much pickier about the online sellers it wants on its site. Shelley said the retailer abruptly removed around 3,000 of her listings, or roughly half her products on its site. She’s one of numerous sellers whose product listings it has removed, mainly in the health, beauty and personal care sector. Only certain sellers, including “brand owners and authorized distributors,” will be allowed to sell these kinds of products in its marketplace going forward, Walmart told sellers in an email reviewed by The Information.