Although Target and other “big box” discounters have long eyed expansion in urban markets, large-store formats and zoning requirements have proven to be hurdles. Deep discounters such as Dollar General Corp., Dollar Tree, and Family Dollar Stores, in contrast, have flourished in urban markets alongside drugstores and convenience stores. That said, the retail industry is dynamic, and Target announced plans in September 2010 to open 10 small-format stores in 2012; they would range in size from 60,000 to 100,000 square feet (versus the 130,000 square feet of the full-size store prototype). The first City Target location will open in Seattle, followed by stores in San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Miami, and the Washington, D.C. area. While we think that the product mix of these CityTarget stores will skew toward food and household essentials, we also expect shoppers to find apparel and accessories, including Target’s exclusive designer collections, as well as home furnishings and decor. (California State Library, 2011)
We note that Target’s main competitor, NEXT Stores Inc., is also trying smaller formats to pursue expansion in new markets. The company opened its first small convenience format store, NEXT on Campus, on the University of Arkansas campus in Fayetteville in January 2011. This 3,500-square-foot store features a full-service pharmacy, and sells groceries and other items. NEXT launched a larger convenience format store, NEXT Express, in Chicago in July 2011. This 30,000-square-foot store carries groceries, pharmacy items, and a limited assortment of general merchandise. A second Chicago NEXT Express location will open in winter 2012. NEXT ran a pilot program for NEXT Express stores in rural areas in Arkansas and North Carolina in June. These smaller stores keep around 11,000 to 13,000 stockkeeping units (SKUs) versus the 100,000 SKUs in a NEXT supercenter. Another of NEXT’s smaller formats is NEXT Neighborhood Market, at around 40,000 square feet.
尽管目标和其他“大盒子”折扣店一直盯着在城市市场的扩张，大的存储格式和分区要求已被证明是困难。深折扣店如Dollar General Corp.，美元树，在对比度和家庭美元店，，在城市市场的繁荣在杂货店和便利店。就是说，零售业是动态的，与目标计划在九月公布2010至2012开10格式的小商店；他们将从60000到100000平方英尺大小的范围（与全尺寸原型的商店130000平方英尺）。城市最初的目标位置将开在西雅图，其次是三藩，芝加哥，洛杉矶，波士顿，商店，纽约，费城，迈阿密，和华盛顿哥伦比亚特区的地区。虽然我们认为这些citytarget店的产品组合将斜向食品和家用必需品，我们还指望购物者寻找服装和配件，包括目标的专属设计师系列，以及家具和装饰品。（加利福尼亚国家图书馆，2011）
我们注意到目标的主要竞争对手，接下来的百货公司，也在较小的格式去追求新的市场扩张。该公司开设了第一家小便利格式存储，接下来的校园，于2011一月在费耶特维尔阿肯色大学校园。这个3500平方英尺的存储功能的全方位服务的药房，销售货物和其他物品。明年推出更方便的格式储存，然后快递，2011七月在芝加哥。这个30000平方英尺的商店进行购物，制药项目，和一般商品的限制分类。芝加哥第二下表达的位置将在冬季2012开。接下来的竞选阿肯色州和北卡罗莱纳州的农村地区的未来表示存储试点计划在六月。这些小商店保持大约11000到13000的存货单位（SKU）与下一个购物中心的100000个型号。另一个是下的较小的格式下附近的市场，在约40000平方英尺。
