The “next generation of store design” has arrived at Target
The superstore started teasing a makeover for many of its 1,800 U.S. stores back in March, featuring a whole new layout, a hyper-efficient speed entrance, and more creative displays meant to inspire shoppers. Now, the first one built from the ground up is finally open in Richmond, Texas, a suburb of Houston.
RELATED: Joanna Gaines Shares Her Favorite ‘Standouts’ from Her Target Line
Though the brand has already been refreshing some stores scattered across the country to fit in with its new vision, the Richmond location is the first new build featuring all the elements you can expect from Target 2.0. According to a post on the A Bullseye View blog, “This store will influence the hundreds of remodels planned in the years ahead.” That’s 1,000 stores by 2020, to be precise.
The first difference shoppers will notice is the two separate entrances: The “Ease” entrance is for people who are just looking to grab a few necessities, and puts guests right in front of a pick-up desk for online orders and near to the grocery area.
Visitors who want to grab a big red cart and browse for hours can still do so by heading toward the “Inspiration” entrance, which will land them nearer creatively displayed home goods, fashion and beauty items, as well as any exclusive collaborations.
RELATED VIDEO: Grieving Grandfather Handed a Toddler $20 in Target for the Most Heartbreaking Reason
The layout inside the store will also change noticeably. “A curved center aisle through shops and displays makes products pop,” says the blog post. “Concrete floors, pendant and circular lighting treatments and displays at varying heights draw guests in as they move through the store.”
Other new additions include designated nursing rooms in 40 of the remodeled stores, and a curbside pickup area out front, where guests can wait in their cars for a Target employee to bring items from their online order out to them.
RELATED: Target Will Soon Be Lowering Its Grocery Prices in a Major Way
Mark Schindele, senior vice president of Target Properties, notes in the post, “As we remodel stores now and in the future it’s about mass customization, being locally-relevant and doing it at scale across the country, listening to and learning from our guests’ feedback along the way.”
As long as we can grab a giant coffee, a giant cart and troll the newly curvaceous aisles toward our favorite section, it seems like the future is going to be all right.