() was founded in . It sells more
Gift Cards than any other retailer in the
United States and is also the third-largest seller of music in the United States.
Top 10 Music Retailers in the United States.
The company's roots were founded in
1902 when
George Dayton opened a retail store named
Goodfellows in downtown Minneapolis. In
1903 , the store changed its name to the
Dayton Dry Goods Company , and it changed its name again to the
Dayton Company in
1910 . In
1956 , The Dayton Company opened
Southdale , the world's first fully-enclosed two-level shopping center in suburban Minneapolis.
In
1962 , the Dayton Company entered discount merchandising by opening its first official Target discount store in
Roseville, Minnesota , a suburb north of
St. Paul . By
1979 , it would be the company's top revenue producer. In 1967, the Dayton Corporation was established and it went public with its first offering of common stock. In
1969 , the Dayton Company merged with the J.L. Hudson company. In
1978 , the company acquired
Mervyn's and becomes the 7th largest retailer in the United States. In late 1986 the company acquired Gemco from Lucky's and in
1990 it acquired
Marshall Field's . Dayton Hudson Corporation changed its name to Target Corporation in
2000 ; by then, more than 75 percent of the corporation's revenue came from the Target division. In
2001 , Target Corporation announced that its
Dayton's and
Hudson's stores would operate under the
Marshall Field's brand. The three brands had been operating as a single unit, the Department Store Division.
On
March 10 ,
2004 , Target Corporation announced it had hired
Goldman Sachs Group to analyze options for selling its Marshall Field's and Mervyn's chains of
Department Store s. Three months later, on
June 9 ,
2004 , Target Corporation announced its sale of the Marshall Field's chain and several Mervyn's stores to
St. Louis, Missouri -based
May Department Stores Company , which became effective
July 31 ,
2004 . On
July 21 ,
2004 , it announced the sale of Mervyn's to an investment consortium including Sun Capital Partners, Inc., Cerberus Capital Management, L.P., Lubert-Adler/ Klaff and Partners, L.P., which was finalized
September 2 . In
2005 ,
Federated Department Stores acquired
May Department Stores and announced that by
Fall of
2006 , it will eliminate the Marshall Field's name in favor of the
Macy's nameplate.
Today, Target Corporation has its headquarters on
Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis, near the site of the original Goodfellows store. It operates its main retail subsidiary, Target Stores, under the banner of 'Target'. The company owns several other subsidiaries, which include:
- : issues Target's credit cards, known as the Target REDcard, consisting of the Target VISA and the Target Card (formerly the Target Guest Card), issued through Target National Bank (formerly Retailers National Bank). Target Financial Services also oversees GiftCard balances (see '' GiftCards '' section below).
- : This global sourcing organization locates merchandise from around the world for Target and helps import the merchandise to the United States. Such merchandise include garments, furniture, bedding, and towels. TSS/AMC has 27 full-service offices, 48 quality-control offices, and seven commissionaires located throughout the world. TSS/AMC employs 1,200 people. Its engineers are responsible for evaluating the factories that do business with Target Corporation for quality, as well as labor rights and transshipment issues. Target Corp's Vendor Compliance
- : provides design-services and furniture for office space. Currently, Target Commercial Interiors has an unusually high market share of Fortune 500/1000 business customers, and are expanding to attract small to medium sized businesses, as well as home offices. This subsidiary has six showrooms in Illinois , Minnesota , and Wisconsin , including a first-of-its-kind retail concept store and showroom in Bloomington, Minnesota that opened on June 23 , 2005 .
- : owns and oversees the company's Private Label products, including the grocery brands Archer Farms and Market Pantry. In addition, Bullseye Dog is a trademark, and the Bullseye Design and 'Target' are registered trademarks of Target Brands.
- : owns and oversees the company's E-commerce initiatives, such as the Target.com domain. Founded in early 2000 , target.direct is a combination of the company's e-commerce team and its direct merchandising unit into a single, integrated organization. In 2002 , target.direct and Amazon.com created a partnership where Amazon.com would provide order fulfillment and guest services for Target.com, and to this day Target Corporation's e-commerce website still uses Amazon.com's e-commerce system. News Article detailing partnership between Target and Amazon.com
Target Corporation's discount
Retail chain in the United States has 1,418 stores in all states except for
Alaska ,
Vermont , and
Hawaii that operate under the mastheads of , '''Target Greatland''', and '''SuperTarget'''. The company "clearly wants to open a store on Oahu, Hawaii". The first Target store opened in 1962 in
Roseville, Minnesota . That store was closed and demolished on
January 8 ,
2005 to make room for a SuperTarget. Target Corporation has aggressive plans to have 2,010 stores open by the year 2010.
Target Corporation Facts as of April 6, 2006 - in .pdf format
Target plans expansion to Hawaii
Target stores are generally 95,000 to 125,000 square feet (12,000 m&
2) and carry hardlines ("normal" products and goods), softlines (clothing), and a limited amount of groceries, usually non-perishable. Specifically, Target stores carry clothing, shoes, jewelry, health and beauty products, electronics, compact discs,
DVD 's, bedding, kitchen supplies, sporting goods, toys, pet supplies, automotive supplies, hardware supplies, and food. They also carry seasonal merchandise such as patio furniture during the summer and
Christmas decorations during November and December. Many stores may also have one-hour photo processing, a portrait studio, an optical store, and a
Pharmacy . Many stores in the southern states also include a garden center. Stores opened and remodeled in 2004 or later also include the expanded snack bar that is featured in Target Greatland locations. These generally include a
Starbucks and a
Pizza Hut Express in addition to Target's ''Food Avenue''.
In the past, the one-hour photo processing labs were not owned by Target, but by for online photo services, including ordering prints online for one-hour store pickup.
,
New Jersey . Unlike smaller Target stores, Target Greatlands feature double entrances.]]
Target Greatland stores average about 150,000 square feet (14,000 m&
2) and carry a larger selection of general merchandise than basic Target stores. In the summer of
2005 they reorganized the sales floor allowing them to double the grocery space they had before. However, they do not have a full line of groceries. Prominent features include double entrances on single level stores along with an expanded snack bar. The snack bar may include a
Pizza Hut Express ,
Taco Bell Express , and/or a
Starbucks . The construction of new Target Greatland stores are being phased out in favor of prototype more similar to their standard stores.
The first Target Greatland opened in
Apple Valley, Minnesota in 1990 and has since been remodeled and expanded, becoming a SuperTarget.
,
Utah . Shown is the merchandise loading lane between the double entrances on the front of the building.]]
SuperTargets are Target's version of a
Hypermarket . They are about 175,000 square feet (16,000 m&
2). Like Target Greatlands, SuperTargets feature double entrances on one story stores; some also have between the double entrances a merchandise loading lane as a prominent feature of the building. They carry everything a Target or a Target Greatland does in addition to a grocery store, including produce, deli, meats, liquor, and baked goods. Many SuperTargets also feature a
Starbucks Coffee shop, a
Pizza Hut Express , a
Wells Fargo Bank , portrait studio, and an optical store. Unlike many other hypermarkets in the United States, such as
Wal-Mart Supercenters, SuperTargets are not continuously open.
The first SuperTarget opened in
Omaha, Nebraska in
1995 , and the second SuperTarget opened in
Lawrence, Kansas later that same year. Currently, Target operates 159 SuperTarget stores in 21 states.
Target Corp. Timeline - in .pdf format Target has recently changed the design of its SuperTarget stores, announcing that they will soon carry a larger assortment of personal care items. The exterior of SuperTarget has experienced a makeover, with a more modern approach having been given to the exterior.
- TRADE" class="copylinks">E---TRADE trading station instead of a Wells Fargo Bank. However, in June 2003 , E---TRADE decided to remove all E---TRADE branches from their SuperTarget locations News Article detailing E---TRADE's withdrawal from SuperTarget locations without advance notice. This sudden move was not initiated by Target Corporation. Mitchell Caplan, E---TRADE's CEO, said that "We were not able to make it into a profitable distribution channel...[w]e're better off exiting." E---TRADE also sent a letter of notification to their customers informing them about this change.
. (
Via Microsoft Live Local )]]
While many Target stores share a fairly common Target Store in
Brooklyn ,
New York City ,
New York . This location exemplifies the need for multi-story stores with small footprints in heavily trafficked areas. Atlantic Terminal is one of the busiest Target stores in the country.Details on the urban Target store in
Brooklyn, New York City, New York
The average urban multi-level Target location is of a fairly simple architecture such as the location in ). Where required by
Law , local
Custom , or decided by the company to drive visibility and sales, they may have elaborate
Architecture such as the aforementioned
Nicollet Mall location or the
Gateway Center in
West Hollywood, California .Details on the urban Target store in
West Hollywood, California
These unique multi-level locations may feature many oddities that set it apart from a standard Target location. Although these locations are not Target Greatland or SuperTarget locations, they still feature multiple entrances, usually on different levels. Checkout lanes may be located in one central area and service two exits and/or there may be satellite locations to serve additional exits. Transferring between levels in the store with
Shopping Cart s is accomplished via
Elevator s and a specialized
Escalator , called a
Vermaport .
Freight Elevators are used to transfer product between floors and stock rooms which may be located on its own floor above or below the store or share floor space with the selling floor on the same level. Stores without parking lots (Atlantic Terminal, West Hollywood) and stores connected to malls feature shopping carts with locking wheels. As the shopping cart exits the store into the mall area or into city
Sidewalk s, one wheel on it will lock and render the cart unusable.
This concept has also been used to convert Target stores from former
Montgomery Ward and
Younkers stores.
On the Bull’s Eye: One vacant store is another’s ‘Target’ Article detailing vacant Montgomery Ward store being replaced by an urban Target store in Mall 205, Portland, Oregon
Target Corporation currently operates 23 distribution centers across the United States. With the exception of vendor supplied items, such as greeting cards and soda, these distribution centers ship items directly to Target stores. Also, unlike Wal-Mart, Target's grocery selection does not come from their own distribution centers, but from the companies that Target has partnered up with. For example, the produce carried in SuperTargets comes from
Supervalu distribution centers.Rowley, Laura (2003) ''On Target: How the World's Hottest Retailer Hit a Bull's-eye'' John Wiley & Sons; Hoboken, New Jersey. ISBN 0-471-25067-8.
On
August 9 ,
2004 , Target announced to their suppliers that they were going to perform a trial on the effects of
Radio Frequency Identification on the efficiency of
Supply Chain Management in the
Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex . This trial involved one Target distribution center and ten nearby Target stores. Here, RFID tags would be placed on the bar codes of pallets and cartons to track the goods from the suppliers to the distribution center, and from the distribution center to the stores.
News Article detailing Target's use of RFID
Target stores intend to differentiate themselves from their competitors like
Kmart and
Wal-Mart by offering what they believe is more upscale, trend-forward merchandise. As a result, Target stores tend to attract younger and more educated and affluent customers than its competitors. The
Median Target shopper is 46 years old, which is the youngest of all major discount retailers that Target competes directly against. The median household income of Target's customer base is roughly $55,000
USD . Roughly eighty percent of Target customers are female, and about 38 percent have children at home. About eighty percent have attended college and 43 percent have completed college.
Target refers to itself as a "discount
Department Store " instead of just a discount store. Target stores do not play
Ambient Music , commonly known as
Elevator Music and often distributed by
Muzak . However, several Target stores feature a Starbucks, and those that do play music only in the Starbucks centers. It also does not promote items or services through its
Public Address System . Target designs its stores to be more attractive than Wal-Mart by having wider aisles, drop ceilings, a more attractive presentation of merchandise and generally cleaner fixtures. Target stores do not sell
Firearms or
Tobacco . Unlike Wal-Mart, however, it does sell "explicit" CDs and "racy" magazines such as
Maxim and
FHM .
Target has many exclusive deals with various designers, including
Isaac Mizrahi ,
Michael Graves ,
Mossimo ,
Fiorucci ,
Liz Lange , and Luella, among others. Target introduced its first designer line of products, the Michael Graves collection, in
1999 .
Wal-Mart and
Kmart have followed Target's lead by signing exclusive designers to their stores as well. Target also partners with well-established national brands to create exclusive collections for its stores. Recently,
Sony created a line of electronics under the Sony LIV name geared towards women. The collection included a CD player that resembled a purse, and a CD player that was equipped to be mounted under the kitchen counter. Another example of this is Target having an exclusive deal with
Food Network for selling DVDs of TV shows featuring popular chefs such as
Rachel Ray ,
Alton Brown , and
Paula Deen . Sometimes manufacturers will create red-colored items, exclusively for Target. In
2002 ,
Nintendo produced a red
Special Edition Variant of the
Game Boy Advance , which featured the Target logo below the screen.
Target calls its customers "guests", its employees "team members", and its supervisors as "team leaders." It derived this practice in the early-
1990s from
The Walt Disney Company .
Many of Target's biggest fans jokingly refer to a Target store as "Tar-zhay" or Targé (Tar-jé) ( word, a reference to its more upscale image compared to its competitors. This trend is incorrectly believed to have been started by
Oprah Winfrey , when she used the French pronunciation to refer to the store on her television show. This contradicts with Laura Rowley's book, ''On Target'', which traces the pronunciation back to
1962 , the year the first Target opened. This pronunciation has also led some people to incorrectly believe that the company is French-owned.
The Target GiftCard is the retailing division's
Stored-value Card or
Gift Card . Target sells more gift cards than any other retailer in the
United States , and as of
December 21 ,
2005 , the most in the world. The unique designs of their cards contribute to their higher sales. Past and current designs include "scratch and sniff" (such as peppermint during the
Christmas season),
Glow In The Dark ,
LED light-up, a gift card that can function as a
CD-ROM , and even a giftcard that allows the sender to record a voice message. A current environmentally friendly giftcard is made from bioplastic manufactured from corn.
Target's Bioplastic Gift Card
Many of these design ideas are not used by any other retailer in the United States other than by Target Corporation. It is noted that some of these unique design ideas are
Patent ed, and these patents are assigned to the Target Brands subsidiary. For example, some such Target GiftCard designs feature a wooden front side. The
United States Patent And Trademark Office has granted for the "ornamental design for a credit or stored value card with wood layer" to the inventors Amy L. Lauer and John D. Mayhew. for the "stored-value card assembly including a stored-value card, an edible product, and a wrapper" has also been granted to Michael R. Francis and Barry C. Brooks. Both of these patents have been assigned to Target Brands, Inc.
In
2005 , Target introduced a major revision of
Prescription bottles, which it calls the
ClearRx system. The redesigned bottles are flattened-out and turned upside down, providing more room for label. This system, invented by student Deborah Adler, was named one of
Time Magazine's ''Most Amazing Inventions of 2005.''
Time's Most Amazing Inventions of 2005
Target Corporation is consistently ranked as one of the most philanthropic companies in the country. According to a through this program.
Further evidence of Target's philanthropy can be found in
Memphis ,
Tennessee 's Target House complex, a long-term housing solution for families of patients at the city's
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital . The corporation led the way for more $27 million in donation which made the 96 fully-furnished apartments possible for families needing to be at St. Jude for 90 days to three years or more.
Target has a standard no-solicitation rule at its properties, as it wishes to provide a "distraction-free shopping experience for its guests." Exemptions to this policy were previously made for the . Additionally, when Target ousted the Salvation Army bell ringers, Target Corporation said that they planned on seeking an alternate method to donate to the organization. For example, Target donates annually to the
United Way (the Salvation Army is a member of the United Way coalition).
On ,
2005 and
January 25 ,
2006 . With this partnership, Target guaranteed a minimum of $1 million of merchandise to the Salvation Army, making up the difference if the customers couldn't reach this goal, although the Salvation Army claimed that they typically raised $9 million with the red kettle program in front of Target stores. Annette Bauer, a spokeswoman for the Salvation Army's northern division, said "It is not going to make up the financial difference...but it is a great opportunity to partner with Target that might lead to other opportunities."
During disasters, Target Corporation is a major benefactor for relief efforts. Target provided monetary and product donations during the
September 11th Terrorist Attacks on the
U.S. ; it also donated money for relief efforts for the
Tsunami in South Asia. Most recently, Target donated $1.5 million (
U.S. ) to the
American Red Cross in the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It also allowed its store properties in the affected area to be used as command centers for relief organizations. It also donated supplies such as water and bug spray. Besides these major disasters, Target also regularly lends its support to disasters that are not as well known or only affect a regional area.
In
2006 , the media revealed that Target is operating a sophisticated criminal
Forensics laboratory in their headquarters. Originally, the lab was created as an internal need for the company to investigate instances of theft and fraud and other criminal actions that occurred on its own properties. Eventually, the company began offering
Pro Bono services to law enforcement agencies across the country. Target's Forensic Services has assisted agencies at all levels of government, including Federal agencies such as the
Secret Service ,
Bureau Of Alcohol, Tobacco And Firearms and the
Federal Bureau Of Investigation . The lab has become such a popular resource for law enforcement that Target has had to restrict the cases it assists in to only violent
Felonies .
Retailer Target Branches Out into Police Work CNN Blog on Target's Crime Lab
The lab is reported to be extremely sophisticated, and in one case, Target was able to successfully repair a tape that not even
NASA could repair.
Some critics worry that Target and other companies that provide these types of favors for governmental agencies may receive unfair advantages or use their philanthropy to get company special treatment from the government.
Like many other large businesses and corporations, Target Corporation faces criticism. Much negative publicity was generated from the company's decision to no longer allow the Salvation Army to collect donations at its stores (see ''Philanthropy'' section above).
Target allegedly engages in many practices that rival Wal-Mart faces criticism for engaging in; however, because of Target's smaller size in comparison to Wal-Mart, Target often escapes criticism. In addition, many people may overlook Target's practices because of its successful marketing to differentiate itself as being more upscale. Practices that some might deem as questionable include: low hourly wages (lack of a so-called
Living Wage ), opposition to
Labor Unions , and its contribution to
Urban Sprawl .
CNN/Money: Can't touch "Teflon" Target Liza Featherstone, author of ''Selling Women Short: The Landmark Battle for Workers' Rights at Wal-Mart,'' stated in an interview, "Aesthetically, we all like Target better, but their wages are in many places low or just as low, and they all represent the Wal-Martization of our economy, which is the exchange of low prices for poor work conditions."
Interview with Liza Featherstone
In
2002 , the company came under criticism for carrying clothing with the number "88" embroidered on the clothing, which is known to be a
White Supremacist symbol. Target came under fire not necessarily for carrying the merchandise, but for their response. A customer informed the company of the offensive merchandise, but Target only responded with form letters and seemed to dismiss the customer's concerns. Only after the
Southern Poverty Law Center and the media got involved, did Target pull the merchandise from its stores.
News Article detailing "88" controversy
A 26-year-old Missouri woman was refused that allows employees to refuse to dispense medication based on religious beliefs; however, the employee must ensure that the prescription is filled by another pharmacist in a timely manner. Some defending Target would applaud the company for upholding the employee's
Freedom Of Conscience , while others feel this policy is a violation of customer rights.
Target has recently come under fire for firing 39-year-old pharmacist Heather Williams, who based on her religious beliefs could not in good conscience refer a customer to one of the other Target Stores that would dispense the
Emergency Contraceptive s as stated in their
Conscience Clause .
News article detailing former Target pharmacist being fired after refusing to dispense abortion pill News article detailing the Missouri House of Representative's proposed Health Care Rights of Conscience Act
See Also: Target (Australia)
There is also a Target operating as a department store under a nearly identical logo and a similar style in
Australia with over 250 stores. The brand in Australia is owned by
Coles Myer , which holds the rights from Target Corporation to use the Target name in Australia. Target Corporation has never operated stores outside of the United States.
Overview of Coles Myer Ltd.
The Target Australia logo is nearly identical to the U.S. Target logo, the difference being the lack of capitalization of the letters and a period at the end. They may also add their
Slogan "100% Happy" below it.
Target embraces diversity among its employees under a program called "The Power of One". It is Target's belief that diverse backgrounds bring together many different experiences and pieces of knowledge to create a stronger company.
Target Diversity Page It specifically seeks to work with vendors and contractors that are minority-owned or owned by women.
Target Corporation document on its Minority & Women Business Development program
It is has long extended domestic partner benefits to straight, gay, and lesbian employees. It has received an 86 on the .
Despite Target's stated commitment to diversity, the
National Association For The Advancement Of Colored People has repeatedly given Target failing grades on its annual Economic Recioprtiy Initiative report card, a measure of the company's "commitment to the African-American citizenry". In
2003 and
2005 , the NAACP has rated Target an "F" on this report; in
2004 , Target was rated a "D-". In contrast,
Wal-Mart , which scored higher than all of the other retailers on the report for 2003 and 2004, was given a "C+" for both of those years.NAACP General Merchandising Industry Report Card for
2004 and
2005
Target owns the naming rights to the
Target Center in
Minneapolis . It also sponsors
NASCAR and
Indy Car racing teams of
Chip Ganassi Racing .
Target Corporation is also a major sponsor of the annual Minneapolis
Aquatennial . It hosts the Target Fireworks Show, which is the largest annual fireworks show west of the
Mississippi River , and the fourth largest annual fireworks show in the
United States .
Target also sponsors the
Museum Of Modern Art in
Manhattan ,
New York . It hosts Target Free Friday Nights, providing to all visitors free admission to the museum during Fridays after 4 p.m. A similar Target-sponsored program at the
Los Angeles County Museum Of Art called "Free after Five" provides free admission in the evening throughout the week.
