US retailer Walmart is seeking local suppliers in Vietnam ahead of its participation in the Vietnam International Sourcing Expo 2023, to be held in Ho Chi Minh City from September 13-15.

A Walmart store in the US. Photo: AFP/VNA

Walmart will seek supplies of apparel, textiles and accessories, footwear, consumer electronics, furniture and home decor, food and consumer goods, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Avaneesh Gupta, Walmart's senior vice president of general merchandise and apparel sourcing, will lead a delegation to the Vietnam International Sourcing Expo 2023.

In late May 2023, Sarah Thorn, Walmart's Senior Director on Global Government Affairs, told a meeting with Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien that Vietnam is among Walmart's top five suppliers.

She said Vietnam's top exports include apparel, home appliances, electronics, and processed food and that Walmart imported a total of US$2 billion worth of goods from Vietnamese suppliers.

Sarah urged the ministry to support Walmart in expanding its operations in Vietnam, given the uncertainty of global supply chains, potential pandemics, and geopolitical tensions.

Walmart now has 30 research centers located in 17 countries. The company works with about 2,400 key suppliers and 4,000 factories, and about 500,000 containers are delivered to Walmart's global stores each year.

In 2013, Walmart opened a representative office in Vietnam to find local suppliers and expand the company's operations in the country.