Walmart customers can add a handyman to their purchases – RetailWire - RetailWire

Feb 01, 2022

by George Anderson

Walmart customers across the country will soon be able to add a handyman to their purchases when they buy products for 150 common household projects that require product assembly and installation, flooring, electrical work, painting, television mounting and more.

The retailer is teaming up with Angi (formerly known as Angie’s List) to provide customers with the help they may need to complete projects. Prices start at $49 for furniture assembly and $79 for mounting a television on a wall. The deal between the two companies will make Walmart, for a limited time, the exclusive retailer to offer these services using Angi’s roster of professionals.

Walmart customers who want Angi’s help can purchase the service inside Walmart’s stores and online via a dedicated Angi landing page. Angi will contact Walmart’s customers to set up service appointments and to make sure they are satisfied with the work done. Angi has a roster of more than 250,000 affiliated household project professionals across the country.

“Since the start of the pandemic, the home is in focus and people across the U.S. are doing more home improvement, maintenance and repair work and they are often turning to Walmart to find the tools and materials needed to start those projects,” said said Oisin Hanrahan, CEO, Angi, in a statement. “Things like sprucing up an entertaining space by installing a new smart TV, painting a nursery for a family addition, and transforming an outdoor space and adding a patio are now projects that Walmart customers can get done seamlessly with the help of an Angi pro as part of the Walmart shopping experience.”

The deal with Angi is not the first time that Walmart has solicited outside help for its customers’ projects. The retailer signed a 2018 deal with Handy to do the same types of projects. Walmart’s move at the time was seen as a means to compete with similar services offered by competitors, including Amazon.com, Best Buy and IKEA.

Handy, TechCrunch reports, was acquired by Angi shortly after it made the deal with Walmart. Mr. Hanrahan, who co-founded Handy, became CEO of Angi last year.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Will Walmart’s association with Angi make the retailer more competitive in key categories focused in and around its customers’ homes? What do you see as the upside/downside to the deal for Walmart?

Braintrust

"Walmart’s association with Angi can’t hurt, but it seems unlikely it will be a significant driver of sales of home improvement-related items."