Walmart merchant and sourcing teams are hitting the road in search of products made, grown, or assembled in the United States. The retail giant will make 8 regional stops between April and June, providing potential suppliers a fast-track to the company’s big event held in Bentonville in early October.
This year, Walmart plans to kick off the spring tour with an event on April 9 in Los Angeles, Calif., and the applications for that region will close on March 20.
Following are the other stops in the “Open Call” process.
April 15: New Orleans, La. (Applications close March 27)
May 14: Dallas, Texas (Applications close April 24)
May 21: Orlando, Fla. (Applications close May 1)
May 25–29 (TBC): Baltimore, Md. (Applications close May 8)
June 11: Indianapolis, Ind. (Applications close May 22)
June 18: Salt Lake City, Utah (Applications close May 29)
June 24: Atlanta, Ga. (Applications close June 5)
Walmart began holding the regional events in 2024 and found that potential suppliers benefited from buyer-team insights ahead of the big event.
Johnathon Ervin, founder of Battle-Tested Foods, got his golden ticket at Walmart’s Open Call in 2025 for his Combat Corn, a popcorn snack food. Ervin, a California resident, attended an Open Call event in early 2025 held in Austin, Texas. He continues to work with buyers to get his product listed on Walmart’s marketplace and in select stores. Ervin said through the Institute for Veteran and Military Families (IVMF), he received mentoring and met with a merchant who provided feedback and a list of must-dos.
“I’m very thankful for IVMF and the mentoring and for putting together the event that kind of paved the way for me to get accepted for the Open Call in Bentonville,” Ervin said. “The meeting with buyers goes really fast, just 30 minutes, and you have to be prepared.”
Susan Clayton, creator of WhitePaws RunMitts, still can’t believe her patented mittens are coming to Walmart stores by the fall of 2026. After a decade in retail, selling to REI and Title Nine, and online, Clayton scored a meeting at Walmart’s Open Call in October 2025. Like Ervin, she first found a regional event to attend. Clayton, a resident of Baltimore, attended the Road to Open Call event held in her home city last June.
“I did not receive a fast pass to Bentonville, but the buyers instructed me to reapply through the traditional process,” she said. “I figured that I had nothing to lose, so I applied through the RangeMe app. And I didn’t hear anything until September. I did get an invite to Bentonville for the following month. I really could not believe it. I knew I had to get down to Arkansas and see what happened.”
Clayton and Ervin were among around 100 entrepreneurs who received golden tickets to do business with Walmart last October.
Walmart’s Open Call is part of the retail giant’s efforts to source $350 billion in U.S-made products by 2030, and support around 750,000 U.S. jobs. Walmart encourages entrepreneurs who want to take part in this year’s Open Call to apply to a regional event before the deadline. Those taking part will be able to showcase their products in front of buyers for their best chance to receive important feedback well ahead of the big event in October.
Additional information about applications can be found on Walmart’s Open Call Portal.
