Wal-Mart fuels an economic boom in Bentonville

A common story in Bentonville and the surrounding Fayetteville metro area. Many of his real estate agents also initially came to town to work for or with Walmart, he said. Now, they’re helping some of the reportedly thousands of Walmart workers who have had to move to Bentonville this year.
In May, Walmart’s chief people officer, Donna Morris, told employees in a note that the company would ask most of its remote employees — as well as most of its office workers in Dallas, Atlanta, and Toronto — to move to, in most cases, Bentonville. Some would move to offices in the San Francisco and New York areas. The company didn’t say how many employees would move, but Bloomberg reported that thousands of Walmart employees would be moving. Around 15,000 of Walmart’s more than 2 million employees work in Bentonville, according to reports. The company isn’t the only one wanting to bring its office workers together in person: Amazon will also require its workers to return to the office five days a week in 2025 after allowing them to work from home twice a week.
Walmart employees were told to move by the end of this month if they agreed to the move, according to Bloomberg. In a Zoom call in May, Walmart employees expressed concerns about their families and their desire to continue working remotely. However, the company is investing heavily in its hometown facilities, building a new, 350-acre headquarters campus that includes walking and biking trails, a hotel, fitness facilities, and a large childcare center.

Brandom Gengelbach, the president and CEO of the Greater Bentonville Area Chamber of Commerce, said that while Walmart’s decision is significant, he sees it as just another positive development for Northwest Arkansas. The city’s population has grown from about 471,000 to 590,000 over the past decade, according to Census data. The region is also home to J.B. Hunt and Tyson Foods and has experienced several economic successes, including the establishment of a new medical school and hospital.

“It’s wonderful and exciting, but it’s also something we’ve become accustomed to over the past few years as the growth has accelerated,” Gengelbach said. “It’s not like we’re a small town with nothing going on, and then suddenly, the local company brings in all these people, and we’re overwhelmed.”

Nevertheless, Gengelbach said that the new wave of Walmart moves underscores the importance of planning and developing infrastructure to accommodate growth and ensure proper planning. The city is also working on a new land-use plan.

“Small towns have such a charm and uniqueness and energy that can make them appealing to people. Nashville and Austin have that. But with growth, there’s a risk of losing all that,” Gengelbach said. “It’s really caused the chamber, the city, and other community organizations to double down on our efforts to be prepared for this and ensure that we can preserve what we love about this community and what makes it so attractive.”
Gengelbach shared that Walmart hasn’t disclosed the exact number of people they’re bringing to Bentonville, but the fact that so many folks have chosen to settle here instead of searching for new jobs is a clear sign of the hard work done by Walmart and the city in developing the campus and the town.

Walmart, founded by Sam Walton, has been a driving force behind Bentonville’s growth, creating tens of thousands of jobs in the area. The Walton family has invested heavily in the region to make it an attractive place to live. Some of these projects include bike trails created by Walton’s grandsons, an art museum, and a new medical school started by his daughter, Alice.

Bentonville already had a housing shortage. Right now, Zillow shows fewer than 300 homes available for sale in Bentonville and the surrounding Fayetteville area. Over the past five years, the median sale price has jumped by 63% from $227,000 to $369,000, according to Redfin. “People are surprised,” Duley said. “They thought they could get a better deal in the area.”

Due to the limited housing supply, many people are buying homes without even seeing them in person, only through video calls, said a managing partner for a real estate agency in Bentonville. The realtor said many of these buyers are single young professionals who might have previously rented before making the switch to homeownership in Arkansas. It’s also a plus that the city has a more affordable price point compared to many other areas, especially the coasts, and many of these workers were already familiar with the city because of work trips.

“It’s the young professionals who love Northwest Arkansas because of the mountain biking and the museum,”. “It’s becoming like a small Austin, and everyone really enjoys it, and instead of being temporary, they’re planning to stay permanently.”
After just a year in Bentonville, many people who moved there for work either upgrade their homes or buy investment properties, according to realtor.