Recently, Sam’s Club’s sudden drop in quality has become a hot topic on Weibo, leading to accusations from Sam’s Club that a large amount of false information is being circulated online. The company has refuted claims that certain products have been removed from shelves.
Back in June of this year, Sam’s Club was under regulatory scrutiny due to multiple food safety issues. Following the appointment of an American executive as Chief Procurement Officer in September, the company has once again come under scrutiny due to widespread malicious rumors.
On October 18th, an article titled “Will You Still Dare to Shop at Sam’s Club with the Plummeting Quality?” went viral, garnering over 22 million views and topping the Weibo trending list. The next day, Sam’s Club, operated by Walmart (China) Investment Company, issued a statement dismissing the allegations as rumors and filed complaints with platforms and regulatory authorities.
The statement revealed that thousands of malicious attacks and false marketing information targeting Sam’s Club have surfaced on various social media platforms. Some accounts have used AI-generated content, spliced materials, and fabricated interviews to produce highly similar content, falsely portraying unlisted products like skincare, health supplements, and food items as “removed from Sam’s Club” for deceptive marketing and profit.
Sam’s Club vehemently denied the specific accusations, stating that low-sugar egg yolk pastries, spicy beef sticks, and NFC pomegranate juice are still being sold as usual. Products such as Yukeyan shampoo, Chinese brand women’s milk powder, and Duomu raw milk powder have never been stocked at Sam’s Club. The company mentioned that their legal team has gathered evidence and filed complaints with platforms and regulatory authorities to protect their rights.
This controversy surrounding the Weibo trending list erupted shortly after Sam’s Club China appointed a new Chief Procurement Officer, drawing external attention. On September 22nd, Walmart China announced the assignment of Sean Jackson, an American Sam’s Club Senior Vice President of Non-Food Procurement, as the new Chief Procurement Officer for the Chinese operations.
The rationale behind this appointment stems from a series of high-profile food safety incidents at Sam’s Club outlets in China from October 2025 to June 2026, including instances where consumers reported finding live mice in sealed mochi boxes.
In response, on June 15th, the China Market Regulation Administration notified that due to recurring food safety issues at Sam’s Club offline stores and online platforms over a period, they had called in the responsible person from Walmart (China) Investment Company to ensure compliance with food safety responsibilities and mitigate risks along the supply chain.
Just two days after the call-in, on June 17th, the then Chief Procurement Officer of Sam’s Club, Zhang Qing, resigned for personal reasons and stepped down at the end of June. Three months later, Sean Jackson, who brings over 30 years of retail industry experience from the US, was appointed as the new Chief Procurement Officer.
Some longstanding members viewed this personnel change as a signal for quality control restructuring. A YouTuber with about ten years of experience in working for foreign companies and a regular Sam’s Club shopper, “Xikang”, expressed confidence in Sam’s Club’s future food safety with the appointment of a “foreign executive” to lead procurement.
The blogger elaborated based on their decade-long experience in foreign companies that “as long as a foreign company replaces its key executives with Chinese individuals, it would no longer differ much from a state-owned enterprise, leading to various corrupt and unsightly phenomena.”
Additionally, an analysis article by NetEase’s “Luo Sir’s Financial Talk” titled “Why Does Changing to an American Executive Lead to Cheers from Netizens?” asserts that as long as it’s not the same old team, any change is supported, further highlighting that after enduring numerous food safety scandals from local companies, many consumers have adopted a simple perception: direct management from (the US) headquarters means stricter standards, stronger accountability, and higher bottom lines.
Amid efforts to rebuild confidence in food safety within his first month as the new procurement head, Sam’s Club faced numerous malicious attacks and false information like the “plummeting quality”. The supermarket advises consumers to be vigilant in distinguishing such false information and guard against malicious marketing traps.
Public records indicate that Sam’s Club, a high-end membership store under Walmart, currently operates in multiple cities in China, including Beijing, Shenzhen, and Wuhan. As of September 2026, Sam’s Club has 69 stores across 36 cities in mainland China.