Target Corp. (NYSE:TGT), the US retailing giant, intends to go mano-a-mano with Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) by offering same-day delivery across parts of New England with the help of its e-tailing delivery arm Shipt.
Come April, Shipt, which Target acquired last December, will deliver the full suite of Target products in as little as an hour across certain areas of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island.
Digital sales up more than 25%
The move appears to be a trial run that is likely to be replicated across the country if it’s successful. Bill Smith, chief executive of Shipt -- which is in 82 cities -- described the advance in New England as “just the beginning” of the expansion Target and Shipt plan for this year.
This month, Target missed expectations with its fourth-quarter earnings, but it made strides online as its digital sales figures were up more than 25% from the same period a year ago.
For the year ahead, Target expects a low single-digit increase in same-store sales as well as a slight fall in earnings per share to between US$5.15 and US$5.27. Wall Street analysts have penciled in earnings of US$5.27 in 2018.
In mid-morning trade, shares in Target held steady at US$69.64.