Target

[FitchMike26]

Same thing just happened to my Oaks PA (Phoenixville mailing address) store.

Original service desk was ripped out a few years ago and replaced with a Starbucks.

Service desk moved to "Express registers and service"

Now they ripped out the snack bar / cafe and replaced it with a Service desk.

Old express registers are now self checkouts.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

Target races to fill toy void left by rival
Alex Van Abbema
Published 2:57 PM ET Thu, 23 Aug 2018, Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal

Fresh off one of its best quarters in years, Target Corp. wants to step up its toy game ahead of the holiday season â€" its first without Toys R Us as a competitor.

All remaining Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores shut down earlier this summer after the New Jersey-based retailer declared bankruptcy, creating an opportunity for other retailers in the kids-merchandise space. Target (NYSE: TGT) was a clear beneficiary: Sales of baby clothing and shoes rose nearly 20 percent in the most recent quarter. Hardlines â€" a category that includes toys â€" saw high-single-digit comparable growth.

"We're picking up sales that would have gone to Babies R Us and Toys R Us. … We're certainly benefitting from new toy buyers, baby buyers that are coming to Target more frequently." said Target CEO Brian Cornell on a media call following its second-quarter earnings announcement.

When Toys R Us and Babies R Us went belly up, it meant the closure of nearly 800 stores throughout the country. In a report released in March, Seth Sigman, an analyst with Credit Suisse, concluded that 90 percent of Toys R Us stores and 96 percent of Babies R Us stores had a Target within five miles.

Cornell said Target is well-positioned to take market share in this category, and is increasing inventory now to prepare for a surge that is already showing up in stores.

"We are investing in categories like toy and baby where we know we have this big opportunity ahead of us," Cornell said in an interview with CNBC. "We are going to make sure we are taking more than our fair share of that market share."

Baby products have been one of Cornell's key areas of focus since taking over in 2015, as Target has revamped its product lineup in areas such as baby goods, furniture and fashion.

But not everyone is sold on a toy-focused Target.

In February, several Target Corp. investors told Reuters they think the company should take a step back from trying to boost its toy sales. Four investors told Reuters that putting capital towards the toy category would be a waste as the retailer competes against a growing threat from Amazon.com.

Brian Yarbrough, a senior analyst with St. Louis-based Edward Jones, warns that toys can be a lower margin business â€" and a competitive one, as other retailers like Walmart and Kohl's put significant investments in their toy offerings. However, he believes that Target's toy momentum will likely continue into the holiday season, through this time next year.

"The hope is that these customers will be new to Target, and this will get them to shop at other categories," Yarbrough said.

Beyond simply gaining market share from Toys R Us, Target expressed interest earlier this year in the company's real estate. Back in March, the company bid on a former Toys R Us location in Kendall, Fla.

[giantsfan2016]

I couldn't find the story on their website (or anywhere else online for that matter), but during the 4PM News on NBC Connecticut there was a story that Target was looking at possibly opening a store in the former Walmart Neighborhood Market in Bishop's Corner Shopping Center in West Hartford, CT.

Brammy's Thoughts: This is interesting to say the least. The former Walmart Neighborhood Market is just under 60,000 square feet and there is a full-sized Target on the New Britain/West Hartford line on Hartford Road near West Farms Mall. This Target was built as a Target Greatland, is 141,000 square feet, and opened as one of the first Target's in Connecticut in 2000 or 2001.

[AmesNewington]

I couldn't find the story on their website (or anywhere else online for that matter), but during the 4PM News on NBC Connecticut there was a story that Target was looking at possibly opening a store in the former Walmart Neighborhood Market in Bishop's Corner Shopping Center in West Hartford, CT.

Brammy's Thoughts: This is interesting to say the least. The former Walmart Neighborhood Market is just under 60,000 square feet and there is a full-sized Target on the New Britain/West Hartford line on Hartford Road near West Farms Mall. This Target was built as a Target Greatland, is 141,000 square feet, and opened as one of the first Target's in Connecticut in 2000 or 2001.

Target would have been better in that spot from the beginning. Even with New Britain's location close by, there is no Target near that end of WH, or the Farmington Valley for that matter. I also don't believe size would be an issue. Pretty much every store in West Hartford is smaller compared to surrounding towns (Big Y, both Stop and Shops). But there is one big plus...MONEY. They will do well there if they open there and Target certainly fits the neighborhood more. No doubt they'll come up with a special design for this store.

[giantsfan2016]

The new flexible size format is a recent addition to the Target chain. It's what's allowing them to open their first Vermont store. (See elsewhere in this thread.

Anyway here's an article form the Hartford Courant about them coming to Bishop's Corner.

http://www.courant.com/community/west-hartford/hc-news-west-hartford-target-walmart-20180920-story.html

[danfifepsu]

I went in the Target in South Burlington VT for the first time 2 days ago which was its first day of its soft opening and it was busy like Black Friday. NOW VT has stores in ALL 50 states. the store is a small format store and has a mural. It's in the University Mall where Bon Ton is.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

Easy, Fast And Free Delivery Is Key To Target's Plan To Beat Amazon This Christmas

Barbara Thau
Contributor
Retail, Forbes Magazine

Target’s 1,800 stores, “which are within 10 miles of most Americans," are the linchpin of the “Run and Done” bricks-and-clicks delivery strategy integral to grabbing market share this holiday season â€" including about $100 billion that’s up for grabs from the downfall of Sears and Kmart â€" said CEO Brian Cornell during a press event in New York City.

“I have never felt better about our position and our readiness to deliver” merchandise for the holiday, he said, the make-or-break period for the retail industry when stores generate the bulk of their annual sales.

To that end, in time for the holidays, Target said it will be the first U.S. retailer to offer free two-day shipping on hundreds of thousands of items from Nov. 1 to Dec. 22, waiving its usual $35 fee and the requirement to use its Target RedCard. (Take that, Amazon.)

Another first: It will offer same-day delivery with Shipt (which it purchased in December 2017), as well as provide its Drive Up, curbside pickup service on digital orders in 1,000 locations coast to coast.

Grabbing Sears, Kmart Sales This Holiday

The cheap-chic discounter has invested big in stores, which in the second quarter fueled a 6.5% comp-store sales rise â€" a growth metric industry watchers said was a thing of the past in the Amazon era â€" and a 6.4% traffic gain that was unmatched by its retail rivals, Cornell said.

That investment helped steamroll online sales, which rose 41% in the second quarter, as 50% of digital orders are now fulfilled in stores, Cornell said.

The symbiotic relationship between stores and digital has also fueled comp-store sales gains, driven by “our guest who is shopping with us more frequently and using more of our [delivery options],” he said.

Cornell expects that amid the exodus of Sears and Kmart stores from the mall, “We’ll even be more of a destination in those markets” this holiday season. The “accelerated decline” of the beleaguered retailers means there is “$80 billion to $100 billion” in sales for the taking, he said. “As those stores close, there is retail market share up for grabs as we’re, invested for the long term.”

Siphoning Business From Toys ‘R’ Us

Target is on schedule to remodel 1,000 stores by the end of 2020. Key to that goal is telling a new toy story.

As of the end of this month, the retailer has added nearly 250,000 square feet of permanent new space to toys in 500 stores, and is offering close to 2,500 new and exclusive items for the holiday, nearly double last year, Target executives said.

Target has repurposed downtrending categories such as entertainment, and donating more of that space to toys.

What’s more, 100 stores have undergone complete toy remodels. Executives said it’s amping up the fun factor in the category with exploratory and interactive displays for kids. In addition, in light of Toys ‘R’ Us’ demise, large merchandise that the chain once had no presence in have been added to the mix, such as John Deere tractors and big doll houses.

“We want to be a major destination for toys during the holiday season,” Cornell said.

This holiday, “over 80% of all retail shopping is [still] going to happen in store.”

[giantsfan2016]

They painted the exterior of the New Britain, Connecticut target and put up new signage on the building as well.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

The growth of Target from 1962 to 2008:
http://projects.flowingdata.com/target/

[Zayre88]

Could this explain why I keep seeing empty shelves at Target?

Empty shelves were the norm at Target Canada, but lately, I keep seing them at Target in the US.

https://www.businessinsider.com/target-workers-say-backrooms-are-unsafe-because-of-shift-cuts-2019-9

[retailisking]

Could this explain why I keep seeing empty shelves at Target?

Empty shelves were the norm at Target Canada, but lately, I keep seing them at Target in the US.

https://www.businessinsider.com/target-workers-say-backrooms-are-unsafe-because-of-shift-cuts-2019-9

I'd regard much of Business Insider's content with a lot of skepticism. They are so sensationalist in their approach that I really can't fully trust them.

[MikeRa]

The Target in Bensalem, PA has recently been updated with new interior & exterior decor.  I don not have pictures of the interior, but here is the exterior:


The Target (Former Target Greatland) on Roosevelt Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA has also been renovated

[retailisking]

Target manager in Swansea, MA endures abuse from Twitter troll, then receives outpouring of support.
https://turnto10.com/news/local/target-tori-receives-out-pour-of-support-after-customer-complaint-goes-viral

[AmesNewington]

The Meriden, CT store recently closed their snack bar completely. They replaced the other nearby locations with Starbuck's along with remodeling the store. This one has also not received a hint of a remodel. I wonder what the future of this location will be. It is across the street from a dying mall that is trying to reinvent itself. Meriden itself is not a very attractive city, but it's on the side of town closest to two affluent towns.

[TheFugitive]

Target just reported a 90% drop in earnings.  That's nine-zero.
If that keeps up store remodels will be the least of their worries.

https://news.yahoo.com/target-earnings-fall-90-inflation-171333825.html

[TheFugitive]

In a dramatic break from their traditional practice of direct marketing through in-home parties, Tupperware has decided to for the first time place their product in stores.  Specifically Target.

https://www.pennlive.com/life/2022/10/iconic-tupperware-products-sold-at-home-parties-now-available-at-target.html

I'm thinking that anyone who relied on home parties to drive sales and then had to live through the country shutting down for COVID for two years felt some urgency to rethink their strategies.

[BillyGr]

In a dramatic break from their traditional practice of direct marketing through in-home parties, Tupperware has decided to for the first time place their product in stores.  Specifically Target.

https://www.pennlive.com/life/2022/10/iconic-tupperware-products-sold-at-home-parties-now-available-at-target.html

I'm thinking that anyone who relied on home parties to drive sales and then had to live through the country shutting down for COVID for two years felt some urgency to rethink their strategies.

Not the first time they did this, though the other was a short-term trial and they stopped it due to worries about it taking too many customers from their regular sellers.

[TheFugitive]

Target executives are sounding the alarm on a significant spike in retail theft.

https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2022/11/17/target-inventory-shrinkage-theft-q3-2022-earnings.html

All in all the increased theft is adding up to a projected $600 million hit to their bottom line.
Those of us who have worked in the business know that if left unaddressed sooner or later this will
put you out of business. 

[Rpameskmartfan26]

Well, I don't want to say this but we lost a photo of the old Hedwig Village Target in Houston. It appears that the owner of the photo deleted it off the website.
From what I remember, The store used to have red green and blue stripes on the exterior when it was open.

Hopefully someone out here still has a photo of it.

Back in 2019, I did visit a store that had those stripes before remodel.

[Rpameskmartfan26]

Never mind about the lost photo, I downloaded it back in April 2022 before it was taken off the internet by the owner of the photo. This location was interesting, this store had it's soft opening on November 28th, 1969 and a Grand Opening on December 1st, 1969. They would receive 1-2 remodels over the years. The last one was in around the Mid 1990's with the addition of the Red, Green, & Blue Stripes on the building (it was pretty much remodeled to the P97 Prototype package if that's the case). It would be replaced by T-1435 on 984 Gessner Rd (which had P01 when it opened) after closure.

This Target was store T-17.

Here's a photo of the store I do have:
You cannot see attachments on this board.

[Crazybangles]

I have a Target near me (Valparaiso, IN, T-1286) seems like it is remodeling every couple of years, more often than any other. I don't understand that. Does anyone else find that true about their store?

[TheFugitive]

Target will close nine stores next month, citing rising organized theft and crime levels.


https://www.foxbusiness.com/retail/target-citing-retail-crime-set-shutter-nine-stores         

[Crazybangles]

It doesn't surprise me that Target is closing stores in the Portland area. Walmart pulled out of the Portland, Oregon area entirely earlier this year, citing crime and shoplifting problems as well.