Paul Post
By Paul Post
Walmart on Quaker Ridge Boulevard opened in 2011 to take pressure off the larger Supercenter on Route 9 in Queensbury.
But sales have been so strong that a 5,000-square-foot expansion and redevelopment became necessary, which store leaders, employees and customers alike celebrated with a recent grand reopening.
“This store is truly the footprint of what Walmart is trying to build,” Market Manager Robert Hazard said. “This store has grown faster than Walmart ever expected. It’s more than doubled in volume. Now we’re ready for the next 10 years of business.”
A new pharmacy, a relocated 3,000-square-foot online pickup and delivery area, larger grocery and new lines of apparel such as Reebok and Jessica Simpson are among the many highlights.
A huge arch of blue, gold and white balloons greeted customers to the rededication ceremony.
Everyone on hand was treated to a large assortment of blue and gold-frosted cupcakes, joined by life-size Pillsbury Doughboy and M&M’s costumed characters.
Store Manager Rick Beaver presented $1,000 donations to three local non-profits – West Glens Falls EMS, Lucky Puppy Rescue and Project Cameron, which provides new books to 22 hospitals in upstate New York.
Throughout the store, vendors representing products such as Gatorade, Sprite and various snack bars treated customers to free samples, and a tasty chocolate fountain was also on hand. Red Bull’s display featured a Formula I race car simulator, giving people a chance to test their high-speed driving skills.
Much of the Route 9 Walmart’s business comes from Queensbury and towns to the north.
Quaker Ridge Walmart is strategically located to serve Glens Falls and Washington County, drawing customers from Greenwich to Whitehall and neighboring west-central Vermont as well.
The Quaker Ridge store is Number 4403 in the Bentonville, Arkansas-based company’s chain of 4,605 U.S. stores. Additionally, it operates 10,586 stores and clubs in 24 countries under various names.
With revenue of more than $611 billion in 2023, Walmart is the nation’s largest retailer, followed by Amazon ($514 billion), Costco ($242 billion) and The Home Depot ($152 billion).
The company expects sales to increase 3.5 percent to 4.5 percent during its fiscal year’s second quarter, but officials are concerned about price hikes caused by Trump Administration tariffs.
Walmart Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey recently told CNBC, “We’re wired for everyday low prices, but the magnitude of these increases is more than any retailer can absorb. It’s more than any supplier can absorb. And so I’m concerned that the consumer is going to start seeing higher prices. You’ll begin to see that, likely towards the tail end of this month (May), and then certainly much more in June.”
To help employees deal with price changes, Walmart is adopting a new digital shelf labeling system that replaces paper labels. Until now, employees had to manually change labels each time there was a price change. Now, a computer does the job by changing the numbers on little digital screens in front of each product on the shelf.
“It’s going to make it easy for employees to make sure everything is priced correctly and accurately,” Beaver said.
With its recent expansion, the Quaker Ridge store has added 33 more jobs, bringing total payroll to 350 full- and part-time employees.
“We have a lot of tenured associates,” Beaver said. “But we’re still hiring, looking for overnight stocking, day stocking and online pickup and delivery personnel.”
Frequent shopper Judy Long said she’s pleased with the store’s new layout and large signs with giant-sized lettering that make departments easier to find. “Now I know where everything is,” she said. “I like how they redid it. I mostly come for groceries, but other things, too, like clothing.”
In addition to Black Friday, Beaver said the store’s busiest days are typically around Mother’s Day, for garden center sales, and during the Adirondack Balloon Festival in September.
“That’s a big event,” he said. “Sometimes on weekends we have balloons landing in our parking lot because they land in the first place they find. It’s pretty cool because the whole community gets involved with it. This is more of a community-type store. Walmart needs this community.”