Comparisons between Amazon and Walmart — the two industry juggernauts that arguably have been the most instrumental in defining retail itself — are inevitable. That juxtaposition is made difficult not only by the two companies’ differences, beginning with their ages and sizes, but also by the changing definition of e-commerce.
That’s not stopping observers from making them. Or trying to predict when Amazon might catch up to Walmart in some ways, or when Walmart might catch up to Amazon in others. Even Walmart compares itself to Amazon, under pressure from investors to demonstrate that it has the same prowess online as off. But as e-commerce continues to evolve, Walmart’s major advantage could be the very thing that seemed like a disadvantage just a few years ago: its formidable brick-and-mortar footprint.
