Walmart’s (WMT) posted a strong third quarter earnings report on Thursday led by a 41% pop in online sales the company saw during the quarter.

“E-commerce was a big push for them. And that investment has certainly paid off,” Retail Trends Analyst Charcy Evers told YFi AM.

Evers says Walmart’s ability to be flexible with innovations like Store No. 8 — Walmart’s incubation arm — is what sets it apart and allows it to take more risks.

“It's a retail transformation. It's not an apocalypse,” she says.

Walmart is also kicking off the holiday shopping season early for the second year in a row. The retail giant will begin its Black Friday offerings online at 10 p.m. on Wednesday, November 27.

Evers says the shortened holiday shopping season is “just an excuse” for lowered expectations because customers have constant access to online shopping.

“The difference between 2018 and 2019 really highlights the fact that it's not about days. It's not about how much time you have. It's about what you put into it and how you access it,” she adds.

Evers says that how brands, and Walmart specifically, handle delivery is going to be what stands out this holiday season.

“One of the big trends this holiday season that's going to set retailers apart is convenience. And they were really early adopters of this buy online, pick up in-store strategy, and it's worked to their advantage. And so they're taking advantage of that,” she adds.

“They're also competing head-to-head with Amazon (AMZN) in the delivery space, and they've got a larger store footprint. So they've got access to about 75% of the population,” she continues.

“Convenience is key. The customer expects it,” she says.

McKenzie DeGroot is a producer at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @degrootmckenzie

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