MINNEAPOLIS—Target will begin testing the option for guests in select markets to add a Starbucks order or make a return within Target’s curbside service through the Target app, according to a news release. Target will also expand its backup item functionality to allow for more items to be available for pickup.
A company spokeswoman told CNBC that Target will begin testing with employees and then serve customers. She said the company plans to scale the features across the country.
Target says that its digital business has more than doubled during the past two years, and order pickup, drive-up and same-day delivery with Shipt have accounted for more than half of those sales.
“It means Target shoppers can now virtually get or do everything they would normally do in a Target store without ever having to enter a Target store," Chris Walton, a former Target executive who co-runs the retail blog and podcast Omni Talk, told the StarTribune. “That is the definition of being a great omnichannel retailer. Customers are never required to enter the store. It is always their ‘option.’” Walton was a speaker at the 2020 NACS Leadership Forum in Miami.
Target said in the news release that customers requested Starbucks pickup and returns. When customers indicate they’re on their way to pick up their order via the Target app, they will have the option to place an order from the Starbucks menu. Once they arrive, a Target employee will deliver their full order to their car. Similarly, for the return process, customers will be able to initiate a return via the Target app and complete it at the Drive Up lane.
With Target’s expanded backup item functionality, the retailer is giving customers a wider assortment of categories to choose from as secondary backup items for their drive-up and order pickups, in the event their first choice items are unavailable.
Target has been implementing additional digital options, including alcohol pickup; Shopping Partner—a feature that allows customers to send someone else to retrieve their order; Forgot Something—which allows customers to order forgotten items after a drive-up or pickup order has been placed; plus more Shipt shopping personalization.
Additionally, Target announced it has dropped its mask policy for staff and shoppers. The retailer will no longer require people inside the store to wear a mask unless required by local regulations, regardless of vaccination status.
“We'll also continue to provide our team with resources and benefits they need, including free medical-grade masks, COVID-19 tests, paid leave for team members with positive COVID-19 cases, and paid time and free Lyft rides to reduce barriers for team members to get their vaccines,” the company said in a statement.