Target expands next-day delivery pilot — with some tweaks

The delivery wars continue to heat up.



A day after Target Corp. announced the acquisition of technology transportation company Grand Junction, the discounter said it has expanded the test of its next-day delivery service of household essentials, Target Restock, to the Dallas-Fort Worth and Denver markets. Target's announcement came the same day that Amazon launched Instant Pickup, which offers a curated selection of daily essentials available for pickup in two minutes or less.



The expansion of Target Restock comes after the pilot launched in late June, in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Since then, Target has been working on various enhancements, including expanding the available assortment from the original 10,000 products to more than 15,000, including such new items as school supplies and baby food. It also is making Saturday deliveries. And in a big change, the test is now open to all shoppers versus just holders of Target's REDcard. By comparison, Amazon's new Pickup program is open only to Prime and Prime Student members, as is its Prime Pantry delivery service.



To take advantage the Target program, shoppers go to the dedicated Target Restock online storefront where they can shop the assortment. (The service has a flat fee of $4.99 per box).



As shoppers fill up a box, a grey bar at the top of their screen will show the percentage of space each item in the box has taken up and the percentage of space that's left. (The box is limited to 45 pounds.) The items will be packaged at a nearby store. If the order is placed by 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday, it will arrive at the customer’s home the next business day.