Sam’s Club, the membership-only supermarket chain owned by U.S. retail giant Walmart, is accelerating its expansion into China’s lower-tier markets as growing local spending power meets saturation in first-tier cities.
On Monday, the retailer opened a new store in Zhangjiagang, a county-level city under Suzhou in eastern Jiangsu province, marking its third outlet in a county-level city and fourth in Suzhou overall.
Its first county-level city store launched in Kunshan, Suzhou, followed by a second in Jinjiang, southeastern Fujian. Sam’s Club is also developing a fourth store in Jiangyin, Jiangsu, with plans for another in Yiwu, home to the world’s largest wholesale market for small commodities.