Walmart de México and Centroamérica Sees Market Expansion Potential
Walmart de México and Centroamérica sees significant potential for gaining market share by opening smaller stores, currently operating under the Express brand, with a goal of being closer to consumers.
Current Presence and Future Plans
Currently, Walmart’s smaller stores have a strong presence in Mexico City. There is a “huge opportunity” to grow this supermarket business in other urban regions of the country, focusing on middle-class consumers.
Cristian Barrientos Pozo, President and CEO of Walmart de México and Centroamérica, stated, “I truly believe we have a huge opportunity to continue expanding in the supermarket business… Due to the large middle class in Mexico, we are seeing many white spaces.”
Out of the 3,214 stores Walmart operates in Mexico, approximately 46% or 1,480 are Bodega Aurrera Express stores, while another 103 function as Walmart Express.
Although the company sees potential in these smaller stores, only two Walmart Express and 35 Bodega Aurrera Express have been opened so far this year, according to their Q1-Q3 reports.
In total, Walmart has announced the opening of 71 stores in the first nine months of 2025.
Barrientos reported that recent openings have shown “very good performance,” and the company plans to continue opening these stores due to the many white spaces in the region.
Maintaining Expansion Goals
Barrientos confirmed that Walmart will maintain its expansion plan with the opening of 1,500 new stores over the next five years.
“At this moment, we don’t see a need to review our ambition in terms of store openings. We’re talking about 1,500 stores in the next five years, and we’re sticking to that,” he assured.
This decision comes despite a slowdown in new store openings—across all formats—during the first nine months of the year and a more moderate consumption that has led to reduced customer traffic.
Walmart currently has a “massive pipeline,” which will result in an acceleration of new store openings in Mexico during the fourth quarter of 2025.
Regarding reduced customer traffic in their stores, Barrientos Pozo expressed confidence in a recovery during the last part of the year, driven by upcoming commercial events such as “El Fin Irresistible” (November 5-20) and “El Buen Fin” (November 13-17 in Mexico).
Between July and September, customer traffic in Walmart de México stores dropped by 0.6% compared to the same period in 2024, but the average ticket increased by 4.5%.
Barrientos commented, “We’ve seen a positive trend in the last few quarters, and we’re very optimistic about the fourth quarter and what’s to come for us seasonally.”
“Although we see inflation in some categories, we’re also investing in price to help consumers access better prices and assist them in saving money and improving their lives,” he added.
Key Questions and Answers
- What is Walmart de México and Centroamérica’s strategy for growth in Mexico? The company plans to open smaller stores, currently operating under the Express brand (Bodega Aurrera Express and Walmart Express), to be closer to consumers and tap into the large middle-class market.
- How many stores does Walmart currently operate in Mexico? Walmart operates 3,214 stores in Mexico.
- What percentage of Walmart’s stores in Mexico are smaller format stores? Approximately 46%, which amounts to 1,480 Bodega Aurrera Express stores and 103 Walmart Express stores.
- How many new stores has Walmart opened in 2025 so far? Walmart has opened 2 Walmart Express and 35 Bodega Aurrera Express stores in the first nine months of 2025.
- What is Walmart’s expansion plan for the next five years? Walmart aims to open 1,500 new stores in the next five years.
- How does Walmart plan to address reduced customer traffic in their stores? Walmart expects a recovery in customer traffic during the last part of 2025, driven by upcoming commercial events. They are also investing in price to help consumers access better prices and save money.
