Target positions itself as a more upscale discount retailer compared to competitors like Walmart and Kmart. It offers trendy, high-quality merchandise at low prices. Target stores average around 100,000 square feet and carry clothing, home goods, electronics, toys, and limited groceries. The stores emphasize clean and organized displays to create a pleasant shopping experience for Target's core customers of younger, more educated women with household incomes around $58,000.

1. Expect More , Pay less

2. Store Front…

3. Where it all Starts….. Step into any Target store in any city in the USA, and you know exactly what to expect: high-quality, stylishly designed items plus all the essentials for your life, displayed in a clean, organized and welcoming environment. The one-of-a-kind experience comes from their ongoing commitment to great prices and stylish innovations; the one-of-a-kind feeling is why Target is favored by millions of guests every year. Fast, fun and friendly: They're the words that best describe the shopping experience at Target

4. Fast Facts… Founded 1962 ( Minneapolis, MN ) Headquarters Minneapolis, Minnesota , USA Key people Bob Ulrich , chairman and chief executive officer Industry Retail Products Clothing, footwear, bedding, home decor, housewares, furniture, jewelry, beauty products, electronics, sporting goods, and pet products. Revenue $52.620 billion USD (2005) Employees 338,000 Slogan Expect More. Pay Less. Website www.target.com (Online store) www.targetcorp.com (Corporate) In 2005 Target closed at $52 Billion in Revenues with EBIT of $ 4.3 Billion and Net earning of $ 2.4 Billion Today, Target operates approximately 1,500 stores in 47 states, including more than 175 Super Target® stores that add an upscale grocery shopping experience.

5. Store Experience.. Target designs its stores to be easy and intuitive to shop, with related departments conveniently placed next to each other (décor next to home improvement, toys next to sporting goods) and a “racetrack” central aisle to speed the customer on her way. And, thanks to their department-store roots, they concentrate on the aesthetics; that things like artistic seasonal displays can turn a weekend shopping trip into a fun family outing. Target also works hard to make sure your experience is consistently enjoyable, with a clean environment, friendly team members and feel-good details on all sides.

6. Size and Category Break up.. Target stores are about 95,000 to 135,000 square feet (12,000 m²) and carry hardlines ("regular" 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, 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, a pharmacy , and a garden center. Stores opened and re-modeled in 2004 or later also include the expanded snack bar that is featured in Target Greatland locations. These generally include a Starbucks Coffee shop, a Pizza Hut Express , and a Taco Bell Express in addition to Target's Food Avenue . The bigger Targets are called Target Great Land and Super Target both of which are more than 100000 Square feet, Super Target being the largest of all.

7. Interior of a typical Target store

8. Differentiation… Target Corporation competes directly against other discount retailers, mainly Wal-Mart and Kmart . Since its founding in 1962, it has intended to differentiate its stores from its competitors by offering what it believes is more upscale, trend-forward merchandise at low cost, as opposed to the traditional concept of focusing on low-priced goods. George D. Dayton, who founded the retail chain explained that "We will offer high-quality merchandise at low margins, because we are cutting expenses. We would much rather do this than trumpet dramatic price cuts on cheap merchandise “.

9. Positioning… As a result, Target stores tend to attract younger and more educated and affluent customers than its competitors. Currently, the median Target shopper is 41 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 $58,000 USD . Roughly eighty percent of Target customers are female, and about 43 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.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. In addition, special attention is given to the design of the store environment: graphics reinforce Target's advertising imagery and shelves are dressed with contemporary signage, backdrops and liners, often printed on inexpensive material such as paper, corrugated and foam boards. One side effect of Target's store designs is that it may cost Target more to build its stores than its competitors.

10. More..... Target calls its customers "guests", its employees "team members", and its supervisors "team leaders." It derived this practice in 1989 from The Walt Disney Company . They do not sell tobacco products and have not sold cigarettes since 1996 . [33] Unlike Wal-Mart, they sell "explicit" CDs and "racy" magazines such as Maxim and FHM . 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

11. Target Vs. Wal - Mart

14. Softlines

16. Health and Beauty

17. Comparison..

18. Fresh Food

19. Wal - Mart Fresh

20. Comparison…