Netflix has a huge culture footprint right now, but it's about to expand its presence through a merchandising deal with Walmart, as the two companies have teamed up to create a new digital storefront for a wide variety of Netflix swag.
This will be Netflix’s “first digital storefront with a national retailer,” says Jeff Evans, US EVP of Entertainment, Toys and Seasonal at Walmart. Given the size of Walmart, the retail footprint this creates for Netflix could be considerable.
According to a list of items provided by Walmart, it appears that only thing will be in stores at the moment—$16 baking kits inspired by Nailed It! Otherwise, the rest will be available via Walmart's website and apps. Evans says there will be “products in a variety of categories, including music, apparel, toys and games.” The Netflix Hub at Walmart already shows some gear from Stranger Things, The Witcher, and Bridgerton, as well as children’s shows like CoComelon and Ada Twist, Scientist available for pre-order.
A number of products will be Walmart exclusives, though some have been presented as “Walmart First-To-Market Exclusive” items. Evans also teased a “crowd-sourcing opportunity called Netflix Fan Select that will allow fans the opportunity to vote for merchandise they’d like to see from favored Netflix shows.”
This isn’t the first merchandising effort by Netflix. The streaming giant launched its own merchandise store in June to sell apparel; recently it added merch from smash-hit Squid Game. Products from anime show Yasuke also landed at Target. And as The New York Times noted in June, Netflix has already struck deals with Sephora and Amazon to sell clothes, toys, beauty kits, and housewares connected to its TV shows.