Target launches enhanced online grocery pickup

Target Corp. has kicked off online pickup service for fresh and frozen grocery items at more than 400 stores in 10 states.

Minneapolis-based Target said select stores in Illinois, Ohio, Colorado, Utah, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky and Kansas now offer the enhanced Drive Up and Order Pickup service, which allows customers to shop 750 items across produce, dairy, bakery, meat and frozen categories at Target.com or via the Target mobile app and pick them up at a store within a few hours.

Target noted that expansion of the enhanced service to hundreds of stores across the Midwest marks the first step of plans to offer fresh and frozen foods for Order Pickup  (in-store pickup) and Drive Up (curbside pickup) at over 1,500 stores nationwide by the holiday season.

Orders placed for Drive Up service are brought out to the customer's car within two minutes, Target said.

The rollout follows pilots in the Twin Cities and Kansas City markets during the spring and incorporates improvements in response to customer feedback, as well as a tripling of the product assortment, Target said. The discount store chain already offered more than 250,000 items for pickup across categories such as home, apparel, daily essentials and others.

“When it comes to safe, fast and easy shopping, Target leads the way,” Dawn Block, senior vice president of digital at Target, said in a statement. “By expanding our Order Pickup and Drive Up assortment to include fresh and frozen grocery items, we’re making the Target Run even easier, ensuring that guests can get everything they need, using the fast, convenient services they already love.”

Related:Target adds fresh, frozen food to online grocery pickup mix

No membership or minimum order are required for both pickup services, which are free. Drive Up is available in 1,750 of Target’s 1,871 stores, and orders are brought to the customer’s vehicle at the designated parking spot in less than two minutes. With Order Pickup, available at all Target locations, customers retrieve their orders at the order pickup counter.

Target also offers same-day delivery of groceries, household essentials and other items via its Shipt service in more than 1,500 stores in 48 states. A Shipt personal shopper picks, packs and delivers the order within a few hours. First-time users get a free four-week trial, and thereafter customers can select a $99 annual membership or a $9.99 pay-per-order option. Shipt orders also are placed through Target.com or the Target app.