Target pilots curbside pick-up

MINNEAPOLIS — Target is testing curbside pickup in its home base.



The discounter has launched the service, called Drive Up, at its stores in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. The retailer described the program as the latest example of how Target is using its stores as hubs to help customers shop “on their own terms.”



Here’s how it works: After placing an order in the Target app and selecting “Drive Up,” Target notifies customers when the order is ready to be picked up. Customers hit the “I’m on My Way” button en route to their store, park in a designated spot, and then a Target employee brings the order out to their car.



“Drive Up is our latest effort to make it easier and faster for busy guests to conveniently get what they need, and simply get back to their day," said Dawn Block, Target senior VP of digital.



More than 200,000 items, including home furnishings, toys, electronics, household essentials, non-perishable food, and baby-care, are eligible for the service. Produce and refrigerated or frozen items are not eligible, the StarTribune reported, and no minimum order is required for the free service.



The Drive Up program was built in house by Target.



"It’s a test-and-learn program, so we’ll continue to fine-tune and enhance the experience, and will look to expand to more guests in the future," Target stated.