SCOTTSDALE — Valley companies will be feeling the heat this week inside the boardroom during Walmart's 6th Annual Open Call in Arkansas.
More than 500 companies nationwide were selected, so these Arizona companies will have to fight to end up on store shelves.
"I get nervous and I get excited," said Renee Barch with the WR Group."I get really passionate about what I'm doing, so sometimes I'm like, 'Calm down! It's an opportunity.'"
Barch was selected through the Open Call to represent the company and multiple products that focus on living a more organic lifestyle.
"They [Walmart] really want to focus on what's kind of innovative and what's different, it seems," Barch said. "Because everything they picked up from our portfolio seemed to be something that had a little bit of an edge or something a little different."
Another local company hoping to score a deal with Walmart is T.J. Brecheisen with Coffee Roasters of Arizona.
"We use full leaf tea, which is all very high quality," Brecheisen explained.
The business has been in the family since the 1980s, so Brecheisen feels like he is ready to answer all the tough questions.
"What's American? What isn't? What's our capacity? How do we ship? Can I get it to a store? Can I get it to a distribution center?" Brecheisen asked. "Those are the kinds of questions I know they're going to ask and I have those answers."
Companies get the chance once a year to go in front of Walmart executives by filling out an application online with a digital pitch.
"There (are) so many companies out there that making great products that just haven't been discovered," said Walmart Director of Communications Tiffany Wilson. "They just haven't gotten a big break."
Wilson said this week is one of her favorites because dreams are literally being made just down the hall.
"It's just an amazing experience and people walk out of rooms with deals," Wilson described. "And they're crying tears of joy... they're so excited about what's coming next."
The next open call will be less than a year from now and applications will open most likely in the month of April 2020.
You can learn more here.
