Dive Brief:

• Walmart has added Walmart Grocery to the Walmart app, enabling consumers to shop with the retailer in one spot and continue to purchase groceries and other items for curbside pickup or delivery, the company explained on its website. 

• The retailer implemented the change after customers expressed the desire to shop without switching between two apps, according to the retailer's website. To access Walmart Grocery, customers can open the Walmart app and select "pickup & delivery" from the start page.

• Customers who previously had a Grocery account do not need to create a new one, according to the company. Shoppers can sign in to access their favorites, purchase history and the items in their cart, per the company website.

Dive Insight:

The merger of its grocery and shopping apps is the latest effort Walmart has made to enhance consumers' digital shopping experience. And it's working — the big-box retailer on Tuesday reported a 74% increase in e-commerce, even as Q1 brought "the broadest set of challenges we've ever seen globally" according to Walmart CFO Brett Biggs. 

When it comes to e-commerce, Walmart's recent digital efforts were aided by its omnichannel services like store pick up. "That Walmart has outperformed Amazon, at least in growth terms, underlines both the deficiencies of Amazon in grocery — which generated the bulk of sales this quarter — and Walmart's growing power in the segment," GlobalData Retail Managing Director Neil Saunders said in emailed comments. 

Overall, grocery retailers have seen a surge in app downloads as consumers shift their spending toward the essentials during the COVID-19 pandemic. Walmart experienced a spike in shoppers utilizing its app, too, as it saw all-time highs in the number of downloads as of early April, according to research conducted by App Annie. In other digital developments, the retailer also introduced contactless payment options across in-store, delivery and pickup orders and recently teamed up with Nextdoor to help neighbors coordinate to facilitate grocery shopping.

Other retailers like 7-Eleven, have enlisted the help of non-grocery delivery services to get goods to consumers. While the coronavirus pandemic may have stretched the limits of in-store fulfillment, it also may be responsible for keeping curbside pickup around in the long term.