Target announced today it will expand Drive Up, its fastest Target Run option, to nearly a thousand stores nationwide in 2018. Available through the Target app, Drive Up allows guests to have their online orders brought out to their cars by a store team member within a couple minutes after arriving at the store.
Target began testing the service last fall in the Twin Cities, and with a nearly 10 percent increase in orders week over week since launch, it quickly became one of the highest rated fulfillment services among guests in the area. Half of guests that tried Drive Up used the service again, raving about it as a convenient, speedy option for completing a Target Run.
“We’re always looking for ways to make it easier for our guests to get what they need on their terms,” said Mike McNamara, Target’s chief information and digital officer. “Thanks to investments in our supply chain and digital operations, we’re able use our stores to fulfill guests’ digital orders with flexibility and speed. With recent success, we’re eager to scale Drive Up and other fulfillment options to more guests in 2018.”
After placing an online order through the Target app and selecting Drive Up, the service alerts guests when their order is ready– usually within an hour. When guests pull into the designated Drive Up parking area at the Target store, team members come out to greet them with their orders. While our goal has been for this to happen in three minutes, our store teams consistently are averaging less than two minutes.
Drive Up has been especially popular among guests with small children, with many using the service to pick up baby care and home essentials, all without having to leave the car. Not surprisingly, diapers and paper towels are among the most ordered items through Drive Up. It’s also proven popular for purchases of bulky items, with cases of bottled water and soda, as well as home electronics like TVs, among the most ordered items.
Drive Up will also expand to Android users beginning in April.
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Drive Up isn’t the only digital service delivering even greater speed and convenience to our guests. Target also announced today free two-day shipping on hundreds of thousands of items on Target.com with no membership required—an offer available when guests use their Target REDcard or spend more than $35.
What’s more, Target will expand its service that lets guests shop select urban stores then have their order delivered the same day for a flat fee. After last year’s successful pilot launch in four New York City stores, Target will roll out the service throughout the year to all stores in the five New York boroughs and select urban locations in Boston, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington, D.C.
And Target Restock, Target’s market-leading overnight essentials delivery service, will also see expansion in 2018—to 40 markets total, covering nearly three fourths of the U.S. population, by the end of the year.
All of these efforts are part of our continuing work to transform the way we use our stores to fulfill guests’ digital orders and, ultimately, make Target the easiest place to shop.
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