The list of the top global retailers in 2021 has been released, with the impacts of COVID-19 altering the results compared to previous years.

Although big US names like Walmart and Amazon continue to reign supreme, new entrants also grace this year’s top 10 as online retailers with massive merchandise volumes make their presence felt.

Here’s an insight into the top 10 global retailers for 2021, along with changes occurring in the top player landscape.

This year’s results

No 1 – Walmart (USA)

Retail type: Mass/hyper
Total revenue: $519.93 billion

Walmart’s omnichannel shift continued to pay off throughout 2020, with an expansion into marketplaces and services seeing it retain pole position, despite the fact the company shed assets in several countries.

Kantar notes Walmart’s lead has shrunk this year, although the next top 50 will likely see it retain its top position.

No 2 – Amazon.com (USA)

Retail type: Ecommerce
Total revenue: $280.52 billion

Amazon’s continued expansion over the past year was evident in the company’s results, with core markets like the US, Canada and Europe also performing well.

No 3 – Schwarz Group (Germany)

Retail type: Discount grocery
Total revenue: $133.89 billion

Kantar notes Schwarz’s grocery formats dominate retail in Europe, but as a privately held retailer, it has previously missed the global list rankings.

In recent times its discount banner Lidl has seen the company enjoy growth in markets like the US, while its online operations within existing markets have also enjoyed significant growth.

No 4 – Aldi (Germany)

Retail type: Discount grocery
Total revenue: $116.06 billion

Building on its success in Central Europe, Aldi is now also one of the fastest-growing retailers in the US. The retailer is also expanding into markets like China, which has seen it jump from No 8 on the global retailer list last year to No 4 in 2021.

No 5 – Alibaba (China)

Retail type: Ecommerce
Total revenue: $71.99 billion

Alibaba has enjoyed rapid expansion in recent years, transforming from a business-to-business retail model into an ecommerce giant who also has a foothold into physical stores, courtesy of Hema and Freshippo.

Kantar notes its purchase of Auchan RT-Mart’s operations in China “made it effectively the largest physical retailer in the market”.

No 6 – Costco (USA)

Retail type: Club
Total revenue: $163.22 billion

Offering a very different retail model to others on the list, Costco has been steadily expanding outside the US into places like Canada (where it recently became the second biggest retailer), Australia and Europe.

“Having finally moved into ecommerce, it is positioned for fast growth in existing markets with its unique value proposition,” Kantar says.

No 7 – Ahold Delhaize (Netherlands)

Retail type: Grocery
Total revenue: $78.17 billion

Courtesy of a strong in-store experience and best-in-class online grocery capabilities, Ahold Delhaize has recently refreshed its image and is enjoying significant growth in both Europe and the US.

No 8 – Carrefour (France)

Retail type: Mass/hyper
Total revenue: $82.60 billion

Carrefour’s recent growth has centred around additional franchises in regions like the Middle East and Africa.

“The Latin American ‘atacado’ format continues to be the retailer’s largest growth engine as smaller express stores expand in all of its existing markets,” Kantor explains.

No 9 – IKEA (Netherlands)

Retail type: Furniture
Total revenue: $45.18 billion

With its highly unique model, IKEA has firmly cemented its position as the largest furniture retailer in the world.

In addition to its existing presence, it is now expanding into Latin America.

No 10 – JD.com (China)

Retail type: Ecommerce
Total revenue: $82.86 billion

Kantar explains “JD.com continues to surprise even the jaded Chinese market” through its rapid diversification and growth.

Its strengths lie in its operational competence and customer service, along with its strategic partnerships with retailers, including minority owner Walmart.

You can read the full list of Kantar’s top 50 global retailers here, or compare it to the results from last year.

US retailer Walmart has topped the 50 global retailer list, with Amazon ranking second and Costco placing fifth, while Walgreens, Home Depot, McDonald’s, Lowe’s and TJX also feature in the top 30.

Compiled by the National Retail Federation (NRF), the rankings see retailers assessed on criteria including international direct selling capabilities, the size of the company’s international retail sales franchise sales, and marketplace sales and sourcing alliances.

So which US retailers made the grade and how did they achieve success?

Walmart – Ranked No 1

• Business foundations: Mass/hyper
• Total worldwide stores: 11,361
• Stores outside the US: 5,993
• Countries of first-party operation: 27

With total global revenue of $510.33 billion, Walmart continues to seriously outperform all its nearest rivals, retaining the top position on the global retailers list.

The NRF notes it will likely hold this position in the immediate future due to its comfortable lead over nearest competitor Amazon.

“As we think about ‘Who will be?’ it seems certain that Amazon and Walmart will be two of the retailers that remain on the top of these rankings for many years to come. Will a third or fourth retailer join this battle for the top position?” the NRF asks.

Amazon – Ranked No 2

• Business foundations: E-commerce
• Total worldwide stores: 472
• Stores outside the US: 7
• Countries of first-party operation: 18

Amazon continues to hold firm in second position with global revenue of $232.88 billion.

The NRF notes that position is largely due to a number of factors including their expansion into Singapore, Turkey, Australia, India and Brazil.

“In each of these countries two things have happened soon after Amazon’s investment,” the NRF reflects.

“One, Alibaba has attempted to match or even outpace Amazon’s investment with acquisitions and investments of its own. Two, the local press has declared that consumers are not ‘catching on’ to the Amazon way of shopping.

“Despite these obstacles, Amazon is a retailer with a treasure chest of options available with one of the world’s highest market capitalizations, a hot domestic economy in the United States where consumers have most certainly ‘caught on’ to the Amazon way of shopping, and strong momentum coming from big and healthy countries such as Germany and Japan.”

Costco – Ranked No 5

• Business foundations: Club
• Total worldwide stores: 782
• Stores outside the US: 239
• Countries of first-party operation: 12

The NRF explains Costco continues to quietly surprise international retail experts.

“First, it makes consumers pay a membership fee to enter its warehouses. Second, consumers who shop at Costco routinely state that the pack sizes they purchase are ‘too big’.

“Third, Costco moves slowly, opening just one or two international locations each year, especially compared with other retailers around them that open hundreds of stores at a time.

“Fourth, Costco has resisted making wholesale investments in e-commerce, so far preferring to sell additional services online rather than core merchandise.”

Despite this, Costco reported a most recent global revenue of $149.35 billion

Honourable mentions

• Walgreens Boots Alliance (No 11) – Drugstore, revenue $115.99 billion, 13,882 stores worldwide, 4605 stores outside the US.
• Home Depot (No 15) – Home improvement, revenue $108.20 billion, 2287 stores worldwide, 306 stores outside the US
• McDonald’s (No 23) – Quick service retail, revenue $26.53 billion, 37,855 stores worldwide, 23,941 stores outside the US
• Lowe’s (No 25) – Home improvement, revenue $67.20 billion, 2015 stores worldwide, 292 stores outside the US
• TJX (No 30) – Discount fashion retailer, revenue $38.97 billion, 4306 stores worldwide, 1163 stores outside the US
• Best Buy (No 33) – Electronics, revenue $42.88 billion, 1238 stores worldwide, 212 stores outside the US
• Starbucks (No 36) – Quick service retail, revenue $26.51 billion, 31,795 stores worldwide, 16,607 stores outside the US
• eBay (No 38) – E-Commerce, revenue $10.75 billion, 0 stores worldwide
• Gap (No 45) – Fashion, revenue $16.58 billion, 3666 stores worldwide, 1028 stores outside the US