What’s New at Walmart? A Creator Studio!

We’ve heard of SWAS or “stores within stores” (like Sephora at Kohl’s) and “pickleball within malls.” However, something new and powerful has now emerged for creators, at a Walmart in Tennessee. It’s a fully equipped creator studio where brand influencers, entertainers, and other Instagram-famous personalities and TikTok stars can capture content.

Create-It Studios is described by local media as “a professional-grade studio space for local creators.” The brainchild of Jonathan Phelps (the founder of both Create-It Studios and Full Sail University), the 2,200 square-foot space contains six fully-equipped rooms: two for audio recording, two for podcasting, and two for video, livestreaming, and multimedia work.

Appealing to both new creators and established brands and personalities, the studio will also offer classes for beginners and opportunities for creators to collaborate.

The creator economy is currently valued at $250B as of late 2024, and it is projected to reach more than $500B by 2027.

Walmart is rapidly emerging as an innovative retail brand. “We’re using tech to rewrite the rules of retail,” declares a microsite dedicated exclusively to the brand’s technology innovations, which include expanded uses for AI, testing of drone delivery, and other forward-thinking human-centric moves.

The new studio is genius on many levels. For example:

• Creators will be prompted to visit Walmart to generate new content in many forms, thereby building store traffic.
• While at the store, these individuals may spot new items on the shelves, either for their personal use or to feature in their content.
• While some installations today focus on just one medium (e.g., podcasting, still photography, or video), this all-in-one facility is a time- and cost-saver for creators.

If this trial is successful, Walmart and Create-It may expand the concept to other locations. The brands launched in Tennessee due to its reputation as a “music state.” The region’s population has been growing steadily and is expected to reach 9 million by 2070. (It is currently about 7M.)

Said Phelps in a recent interview:

“Forever, the world of recording has been secret and exclusive; you couldn’t even get in the door,” Phelps said. “We’re opening that door in the middle of America.”

For the latest trends in the creator economy and insights into how retailers are innovating to drive brick-and-mortar traffic, please join us at Street Fight LIVE 2025 on September 30th at Microsoft’s headquarters in Los Angeles.