Walmart Express

Walked all the way over to the location from the Midtown MARTA station only to find the location CLOSED!!!

Shopping at WalMart can be a sucky experience. But the prices are just phenomenal. It’s hard to pay more for the exact same items, just because the cashiers take greater care in bagging your groceries or are helpful. So that’s where the WalMart Express fills a niche, even for those of us outside of the Georgia Tech community. It’s a small corner store that caters to it’s college crowd. So don’t worry about any selection.
But it has noodles, and bread, and milk — sometimes. It has stuff college kids will want, but at WalMart prices.
But fortunately for me, I also want to buy some of the stuff college kids wants, like bread, and I don’t want to pay a lot. What makes this store genius, is that it’s self-​checkout. That allows me to run in and out, without any lines, particularly on the weekends, and grab bread, milk, yogurt and eggs at very low prices without the hassle that comes with WalMart.
There are two small downsides to the store. First, parking is difficult. There is only pay parking everywhere. If you are already at Technology Square — maybe to get Bubble Tea or at the B&N on the corner, than that makes sense. Otherwise, some of your savings will go to ParkAtlanta and that’s tough to take.
Second, there is a small and random selection. A great selection of Ramen noodles, but sometimes will not have eggs. That’s a little odd. So if they could keep consistent inventory and I had a better sense of what to expect there, I probably could go more often. But otherwise, think of it as a low price corner store, and you should be fine.

Walmart opened a new store on the Georgia Tech campus on August 14, 2013. It’s called «Walmart On Campus» and is currently the third store of its kind. The other two are on the campuses of Arkansas and Arizona State. At around 2,500 square feet in space, Tech’s Walmart is one of the smallest Walmart stores in the world.
The store occupies the old 5^th Street Ribs and Blues restaurant space.
It is tiny. The aisles are small and many of the shelves are filled to the brim with a variety of foods and products, mostly tailored Tech students. The densely packed, compact store reminds me of urban convenience stores in big cities (e.g. 7-​Eleven). More than a couple people in a single aisle already makes things feel cramped.
The food and drink generally consists of junk food, soda, Gatorade/​Powerade, Vitamin Water, and energy drinks — perfect for those all-​nighters. There’s a refrigerated food section with frozen pizzas (Red Baron, DiGiorno, California Pizza Kitchen), Banquet TV dinners, Hot Pockets, and Haagen-​Dazs ice cream. Snacks include assorted Lays brand potato chips, Cheez-​Its, Planters nuts, bags of mini Snickers and Kit Kats, and Maruchan instant ramen.
Milk, Kraft cheese, and a very limited selection of fruits are available. Baskets of individual bananas, apples, and oranges are located near the checkout counters. Speaking of checkout counters, they’re all self-​checkout lanes. An employee oversees and provides assistance in the checkout area.
Other random stuff I’ve seen for sale here are gift cards, cheap cell phones, personal hygiene products (very important on a college campus, especially Tech’s), plastic hangers, sunglasses, and useful electronic accessories like phone chargers and headphones. I haven’t even mentioned the full-​service pharmacy and the restrooms/​water fountains.
Despite being an in-​town «boutique» size location, you can still expect to find the same low Walmart prices.
Parking consists of paid street meter parking (enforced by PARKatlanta) or the pay decks nearby (Centergy, Georgia Tech hotel). The free Tech Trolley stops in front of the store and connects to the nearby Midtown MARTA station.
Overall, I like the concept and wish this store had been open when I went to Tech. However, unless you go to Tech or live or work close-​by, there’s really no big incentive to visit Walmart On Campus unless you’re in a pinch.

Very small location. This store basically carries everything you’d find at a gas station (minus the fresh drinks and snacks). The cashier won’t offer to ring you up if there’s an open self check out, so don’t bothering staring at them. They also stock a strange selection of electronic accessories (speakers, PS4 controllers, etc.)
Overall, this mini Walmart carries a decent selection of everyday items, but don’t count on using this as your regular grocery stop – you’ll most likely die from cardiac arrest.

This little Walmart is only the country’s third in the new «Walmart on Campus» concept. Four days into its existence, I am a fan.
The store is located on Fifth Street, right next to the Waffle House on Tech Square. There’s some limited, metered street parking, and several pay lots and decks nearby. The Tech Trolley stops right across the street, and it’s just a few blocks walk from both the North Avenue and Midtown Marta stations. Sadly, it’s not open 24 hours a day like its mothership stores, but is open Monday through Saturday from 8am-​10pm and 10am-​6pm on Sundays. It’s primarily designed as a spot to pick up convenience store items for those who live and work in walking distance. They also have a full service pharmacy.
Inside, you’ll find a space not much larger than a gas station convenience store. There are a few self checkout registers, and one «manned» register. Beauty items, cosmetics, electronics, school supplies and general household items are directly in front of you as you walk in. The selection isn’t huge, but the prices are the same low ones you’d find in a regular Walmart location– no inflation because of the Midtown address. In beauty products, they have a good mix of cheap (Suave) to salon (Redken) products.
Grocery items are up the little ramp to your left. There are a few buckets of fresh fruit (apples, bananas, peaches) to purchase individually as you leave the store, but that’s the extent of the fresh produce. The rest of the space is filled with every frozen or shelf stable junk food you can imagine. Don’t come here if you’re looking for frozen Kashi dinners, but if you want a Red Baron pizza, they’ve got you covered. There’s also an impressive selection of chips and candy. Coca Cola products (12 packs and two liters) were also available, but the best part about the drink selection was the array of individual, chilled energy drinks, bottled waters, and other beverages. If you’re looking for a drink on the go, this is your spot.
Overall, I’m still likely to walk up the street to Publix for my grocery needs, but this store is likely to replace the overpriced and understaffed CVS on Peachtree for drugstore items.