Target to rebrand CityTarget, TargetExpress stores as just Target

As Target Corp. began rolling out smaller-format stores in the past few years, their names — CityTarget and TargetExpress — sometimes sparked confusion.

While CityTarget stores located in dense urban areas are generally smaller than Target's other big-box stores, that wasn't the case with the CityTarget store that opened last month next to Fenway Park in Boston.

At 160,000 square feet, it's actually larger than Target's typical suburban stores, which are closer to 135,000 square feet in size.

And while the Target store on Nicollet Mall next to the Minneapolis-based retailer's headquarters is definitely in the middle of a dense part of the city, it was not considered a CityTarget.

So now, Target is jettisoning those CityTarget and TargetExpress labels and will soon rebrand all of them as just Target.

"It's about a simplified ­experience for our guests," said Erika Winkels, a Target spokeswoman. "It also helps guests understand that you're not only limited to what's in the four walls of that store."

Target placed iPads throughout the smaller-format stores for customers to buy items directly from Target.com. Shoppers then have the option to have those items delivered to their homes or to pick them up in the store.

Target currently has about 14 TargetExpress and CityTarget stores across the United States. It will begin rebranding them with just the bull's-eye logo in October.

The company, which first announced the change in a blog post at A Bullseye View, added that it remains committed to its urban growth strategy. Smaller-format stores located in urban areas have been one of CEO Brian Cornell's key strategies for growth now that the retailer has slowed down building big-box stores amid a saturated retail landscape in the suburbs.

The company noted that it will open six new stores in October. Four of them were slated to be TargetExpress stores. They will still be smaller-format stores as planned, but will now just be called Target. The other two stores in Texas and California will be traditional big-box stores.

So what about SuperTarget? The name used to describe the retailer's big-box stores with a full grocery assortment will remain — at least for now.

Winkels said Target is continuing to evaluate a number of things, but has no changes to announce about SuperTarget.

Kavita Kumar • 612-673-4113