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Walmart's Jet buys ShoeBuy in push versus Amazon's Zappos

Jet.com's $70 million takeover of the online footwear seller is the latest move by Walmart to amp up its e-commerce chops against rival Amazon.

Joan E. Solsman Former Senior Reporter
Joan E. Solsman was CNET's senior media reporter, covering the intersection of entertainment and technology. She's reported from locations spanning from Disneyland to Serbian refugee camps, and she previously wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. She bikes to get almost everywhere and has been doored only once.
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Jet.com, bought by Walmart for $3.3 billion last year, made the acquisition in a push against Amazon's Zappos.

 Ben Fox Rubin/CNET

Jet.com, the Amazon rival owned by retailing giant Walmart , bought online footwear retailer ShoeBuy for $70 million, the company said Thursday.

The move underscores Walmart's continued push against Amazon, owner of online shoe store Zappos. The biggest retailer in the world, Walmart made online expansion its priority last year, taking over Jet for $3.3 billion and setting up a plan to invest billions more into e-commerce while cutting down new store openings.

Jet said it bought ShoeBuy through its parent Walmart from media and internet company IAC, in a deal that closed Dec. 30. It said ShoeBuy is a leading online seller of shoes, clothes and accessories, stocking more than a million items.

ShoeBuy will operate as a standalone site, but its suppliers have the option of expanding to sales on Jet too, the company said. ShoeBuy CEO Mike Sorabella, his executive team and the company's more than 200 employees will continue to be based in Boston, Massachusetts.