Target debuts a super-sized new store design

Target is getting super-sized.

The Minneapolis-based retailer on Thursday announced a new store design that’s 150,000-square-feet—about 20,000-square-feet larger than a traditional location—with a backroom fulfillment space that’s been expanded five times over to better fill digital orders.

The new footprint is not Target's largest store format—it has locations that span up to 200,000-square-feet. 

In addition to the larger box, the store also features a host of new design elements, including larger windows for more natural light; more plants; locally focused elements such as native outdoor landscaping and more local products; sustainable features such as the use of natural refrigerants, electrical vehicle charging stations and rooftop solar panels; and modernized spaces for workers to meet and relax with “comfortable furniture options,” the company said.

One of the extra-large stores, with the new design elements, is already open in Houston, Target said, and the retailer plans to make the prototype central to its growth going forward: Starting next year, more than half of Target’s approximately 200 full-store remodels and all of its roughly 30 new stores will include elements of the new design. In 2024, all of Target’s remodels and new stores will feature the majority of the reimagined store design elements.

Target's new store design will feature a larger curbside pickup area. / Photo courtesy: Target

The stores are designed to meet the needs of omnichannel shoppers, Target EVP and COO John Mulligan said in a statement.

“Guests and team members tell us they come to Target because they feel inspired, connected and welcomed,” Mulligan said. “With our reimagined store design and larger store footprint that better supports our same-day services, we can give guests more of what they love while incorporating features that build on our commitment to sustainability, community and helping all families discover the job of everyday life.”

Target said years of research went into the jumbo store design, as well as the company’s strategy to debut the expanded footprint.

Target’s digital growth plans have centered on what the retailer calls its “stores-as-hubs” strategy, in which local stores fulfil more than 95% of all of Target’s digital and same-day orders. Today, that channel accounts for more than 10% of the company’s sales.

But that strategy also takes up a lot of space, turning Target’s stockrooms into fulfillment facilities. With the bigger footprint, Target hopes to alleviate backroom congestion.

In addition to a bigger backroom, the new Target prototype will give the retailer the space to offer a fuller assortment of merchandise, including expanded food and beverage departments that feature “exclusive brand partnerships and a curated mix of owned brands and national brands,” the company said in a statement.

Target's new design includes more natural light and local elements. / Photo courtesy: Target

Among the giant Target’s new design features are larger windows for more natural light; more plants; locally focused elements such as native outdoor landscaping and more local products; sustainable features such as the use of natural refrigerants, electrical vehicle charging stations and rooftop solar panels; and modernized spaces for workers to meet and relax with “comfortable furniture options,” the company said.

Target currently has nearly 2,000 locations around the country.

The retailer has been intensely focused on its digital business in recent years, growing it from about 7% of total sales pre-pandemic to more than 10% today.

The company said in August that its digital penetration has more than doubled in three years to almost 18%. Target’s same-day offerings of order pickup, drive-up and delivery via Shipt have grown more than 11% this year, led by the popular curbside pickup channel. During that same period, Target’s food-and-beverage business has grown more than 50% and is now a $1.8 billion segment.

UPDATE: The story has been updated to clarify the size of Target's new store design, relative to its other stores.