MINNEAPOLIS -- Target Stores here plans to launch an ambitious supercenter growth program beginning next year, with the goal of opening 200 SuperTargets over the next decade, after opening only two new locations this year, Robert J. Ulrich, chairman and chief executive officer of Dayton Hudson Corp., said here last week.
"We are confident this concept provides Target with additional opportunities for future growth," Ulrich told shareholders at Dayton Hudson's annual meeting.
Target, which operates 15 supercenters, is a division of Dayton Hudson. Ulrich said the company plans to open two more SuperTargets later this year -- in Atlanta and in Orlando, Fla. -- with plans to begin a more aggressive growth program next year, when 10 new locations are scheduled for construction.
As the company has opened supercenters over the past four years, Ulrich said, it has focused on two objectives -- creating a store environment "that is attractive to our guests [and brings] fashion to food" and designing and operating a store "that meets or exceeds our financial goals."
Ulrich said the company "firmly believes" the supercenter concept has met the test and can now compete with similarly aggressive expansion plans for supercenters announced by Kmart Corp., Troy, Mich., and Wal-Mart Stores, Bentonville, Ark.
