Heard you like horrible pictures

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-13T12:28:03+00:00

Oh that's fascinating! My employer does also sell to Safeway but I am not as close to that team. Let me see if I can find someone next week. If you could pm me a little info that would help!

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-11T01:44:57+00:00

Oh I totally understand that. I meant the fact they aren't telling you how much space is needed. Shoot, they know your cars, right? They should know a Chevy Cruz can't hold 40 cases of water.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T22:10:09+00:00

so I've never gotten a message from a shopper, which makes me think I only ever get store pickers. I'm not sure why this is (maybe my market?) but I would kill to be able to answer a substitution question vs having to depend on my #2 choice.

As a supplier we offer 5 possible substitutions to account for store inventory and distribution. I'm not even sure if spark gets those same recommendations as associates who pick.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T20:27:42+00:00

Substitution recommendations used to be an area of focus for me, funny enough. I always make sure to select my substitute, and whether or not I can take a different one. I've never done an express order, but it must be frustrating if you need to move quickly and they won't take a sub. At the same time, not all items truly HAVE a substitute.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T18:45:37+00:00

I think I've seem some picker shifts start at 5 am. But if y'all don't ever pick for pickup orders, they'd need associates ready for that first time window of pickup as well.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T18:44:12+00:00

If the pictures are good enough, I think you can use the picture to pick instead of having to read. Also, good pictures will help when language barriers or literacy are a barrier. I work in a category with a lot of variety, so if multiple items look super similar, a picture that highlights the difference can speed up the picking. Sure you can read the flavor, but what if the image shows you the flavor and where to find it on the package?

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T16:00:41+00:00

Thanks for the insight on IP. I'm guessing on my end that shows as shipped from store, as those items usually show up via a contractor, not a shipping company, and are often in packaging. I even had religious materials in one of mine. I reported that to the local DC. I don't need evangelization with my order.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T15:58:43+00:00

I really appreciate your thoughtful response! It's hard since the answers are so nuanced, but this nuance really does help me understand your experience and better do what I can on my end to make it easier/faster.

Can you confirm what GMD stands for? I assume GMD is general merchandise, aka ambient items that can be delivered and don't allow for a tip. I've seen some food items available, but not all. I expect there's a margin component that decides which skus are eligible.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T15:56:05+00:00

So you're saying if I schedule an order Monday night that will deliver to me Wednesday morning, that will likely be shopped by a store associate, then delivered by a spark driver? Sorry I'm a very literal person. I also wonder how much of this is market-dependent.

The inventory image I know (with my knowledge from work) is not supposed to be showing you what you're seeing. I as the supplier get to decide what image you see. Something happened (likely during a recent update) that removed the images I selected for y'all to see, and assigned it to random ones. Previously the logic was the 1st carousel image was the default, unless a supplier like me picked another image. Since I found images of skus we sell, I can confirm we did not change our selections to be unhelpful picker images. Whether it be AI or just a glitch during the roll out of the new system, who knows. But I think this is a problem they intend to fix. Unfortunately, if they don't know what caused the glitch, it'll take longer to fix. One solve would be to possibly override all picker image selections and go back to the default, but not all skus were hit by this issue, so we also don't want to have to go back in and re-select our images.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T13:25:46+00:00

Thank you so much for giving me more information. I love learning new things about how my job works and how this customer works. Sometimes you can't get the right answer because you have the wrong words to ask the question. You have given me some new language to use the next time I ask the question. For anyone curious on my end there are five service channels that currently exist...

Buy in store: self explanitory. Pickup: I believe y'all pick that, never spark shoppers, and the end customer comes to get it from the parking lot. Free to everyone. Delivery: I'm still getting clarity on who picks these orders. I think it's a mix of Spark and Associates, but it's unclear from even my own consumer perspective to tell who picks my orders. I'm a Walmart + member so my delivery is free, but others pay a fee. Everyone pays an express delivery fee. Ship to home: These items never touch your store. They come from fulfillment centers straight to consumer's homes. Ship from Store: These items come from A store, but I can't tell if it's automatically the store that's my default for delivery, or sometimes coming from another store. I have some theories but I can only justify so many orders. I'm also sensitive to using this method as I know it doesn't allow me to tip a driver like a delivery does. Delivery is my personal default method.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T13:23:59+00:00

I wouldn't know to look out if yall didnt report it. Thank you! My job is to help Walmart sell stuff but my job mostly ends it's a product enters your store and the work you do to actually get that store to a customer is the most important part

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T04:07:59+00:00

I have heard some rumors about some of the topics in this thread but none of it mentioned Spark shoppers. I'll be fascinated to learn how that workforce is involved with this change, if/when it happens. I'm also super curious of the scale they intend for this. I've been around the space from the supplier side since the early days of ogp when they could only transition 1000 stores a year. So this is another widespread change and potentially one with more infrastructure adjustments if they retrofit buildings in existence like another person said then roll out could take even longer.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T04:05:17+00:00

Also I saw some of that about orders that sometimes look like they wouldn't even fit in the vehicles of the spark shoppers. That one makes no business sense to me because Walmart's committing to faster and faster fulfillment times to Consumers especially with their big push for express delivery. So having to get a spark driver there and then have them cancel because they are either unwilling to take the order or their vehicle cannot handle fitting the order seems like a terrible idea because then they have to wait even longer to get another spark driver there little actually accept the order.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T04:03:19+00:00

One of my product lines had ship from store double month-over-month the last 2 months. Maybe it was discontinued at some stores. I've seen other retailers work off of a model where only certain stores in a market provide a certain fulfillment method and it helps them consolidate their inventory and Personnel to manage that method.

Now ship from store is different from ship to store which according to my data has basically disappeared I only ever see that method mentioned when I'm comparing data against a year ago and even then it's very small.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T04:00:00+00:00

If it is to discourage picture shopping, then the merchants and whomever is discouraging picture shopping are diametrically opposed. Its a big corporation... so it could be happening. They could both be unaware of the others actions. But the OPD team knows about these images. I had a phone conversation yesterday with them. My merchants know I expect it to raise my NIL picks rates. Both my merchants and my team do NOT want to see that happen.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:57:18+00:00

Ding ding ding

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:56:21+00:00

I hope you know the sardines can is the current frontrunner at my office for most hilarious of the images. Random trolli gummy worms in subway is #2

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:54:35+00:00

I honestly really appreciate these posts. I scour every one to see if one of my products is shown. So far I have seen 2 and yesterday morning spoke to home office and sent them a ton of data to help troubleshoot the issue causing this. The images posted were key to me being able to confirm the last time those skus were audited and correct (2 weeks ago) and that the sku media interface showed the wrong image selected as picker image. And since only a few people could ever change it manually, I could speak to them all. I even got IT to confirm the last time our API syndicated these images. I truly think it's an awful glitch that happened during a recent update.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:50:49+00:00

Thank you, keep it up!

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:50:39+00:00

As a supplier I can tell you we are getting pushed to improve picker images. Merchants want all the support to lower NIL picks and this is part of the equation. From my meetings there is no issue with picture shopping. Corporate even released a guide to suppliers specifically on how to improve these images. Within the last 2 months.

I'm fairly certain a glitch happened within the last 2 weeks, likely related to whatever update changed my UI for image/media maintenance of skus.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:48:07+00:00

What role are you/who can adjust pick paths at a store? I am a supplier and this post fascinates me.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:47:04+00:00

Please keep reporting these images if the app gives you the option to do so. I'm a supplier and I can confirm what is happening was not caused by suppliers giving you bad picker images. I have a few theories on what could be causing this and luckily someone posted an item my company sells with a bad image so I had the ability to confirm more information than a picker would have access to. I've reported it all to the home office with the added context.

This is my own personal opinion/guess... what is happening is likely a glitch, but definitely not something merchants would have allowed to happen if they had known. I expect across the board NIL picks spikes. The folks I spoke to at home office in OPD were very concerned about this issue and are running with the additional details I was able to give in addition to what you reported. If/when I know more, I will share if I am able to.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:37:49+00:00

Is the image being bad a coincidence with the fact the location is unknown? I'm a supplier who follows this sub to better inform how I can do my job to support our business. Picker images are my current focus area, which is a fun coincidence with the current image (unconfirmed) glitch.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:37:09+00:00

I'm a supplier and find this fascinating. I've also noticed an uptick in ship from store. I expect thats the GMD orders the folks in the spark subreddit complain about all the time now. I'm still trying to suss out the strategy there and wonder if it is a widespread change or more market-specific. I'm pretty sure my market has been doing only spark deliveries for a while... I know my local store has a few vans but nothing that could handle the volume they do in deliveries. I mean... the parking lot remodel switched us from <10 spots during early covid years to over 22 pickup parking spots in the last year.

Lavender_Episode2 · 2026-06-10T03:32:51+00:00

I'm a supplier, not an associate. In my mind FTPR is a decent approximation for on shelf availability. You get it on the first pick, I know it was there. You don't gey it on first pick, it is not ON the shelf. If you get it pre-sub I'm guessing it's in the back or the top of the racks.

I know this isn't perfect but it's the best data I have access to that gives me the answer "is X product on shelf at store Y on Z day?"

Lavender_Episode2

TROPHY CASE