BIZWATCH: When Walmart and Meijer act, people watch - IndyStar

BIZWATCH: When Walmart and Meijer act, people watch - IndyStar

There's lots of retail store news lately, so it's probably only appropriate that two of the biggest players in the game are heard from: Walmart and Meijer.

Everybody watches what Walmart does, since it's the biggest retailer in the world, so people in this part of the state paid attention when Walmart announced it was remodeling some Central Indiana stores.

A Walmart on the east side of Indianapolis is getting a makeover that includes "all new shelving, signing, flooring and product assortment," the company announced. A new layout with wider aisles and low-profile shelving is part of the overhaul.

Muncie's Walmart stores are already pretty well updated. The newest, built in 2006, includes "green" features like skylights to help cut down on the necessity for electric lights. The older, northside store was remodeled a few years ago to include groceries.

Of course, Target and Meijer have been remodeled in recent years, with Target adding groceries last year and Meijer getting an extensive face-lift. But Meijer is also pursuing green goals at a Michigan store.

Meijer announced Tuesday that it will renovate its Muskegon, Mich. store to become "the nation's first LEED-certified supercenter remodel."

Meijer's plans include six windmills on the store's roof to produce electricity for the store. The store will capture and treat on site 90 percent of its rainwater. The roof will have high solar reflectivity to reduce "heat island" effects and water use will be reduced.