Retail News Breaks Archives

Target rolling out food departments

MINNEAPOLIS – Target Corp. plans to aggressively expand its grocery business and also move into urban markets.

The discounter intends to have "P-fresh" grocery departments in about 850 of its roughly 1,500 stores by the end of 2011, and expects those departments to add 1 or 2 percentage points to 2011 same-store sales.

Target had previously announced plans to add grocery departments to 350 of its stores this year; it now says it will add the sections to another 400 stores in 2011.

The retailer also said it plans to open a small-format urban store in Seattle in 2012, and is exploring other markets (including New York, Miami, Boston and Chicago) where the concept would work.