Target Cuts Opening Hours, 'Vulnerable Guests' Can Make Purchases In Dedicated Hours

Target Corporation’s TGT stores will stay open during the current COVID-19 pandemic but will cut hours of operations beginning Wednesday.

What Happened

The retailer has announced it will be closing its stores by 9 p.m. daily local time as of Wednesday. Additionally, there will be a particular hour dedicated to vulnerable shoppers every Wednesday morning. The early closing will help staff restock and clean the stores.

Brian Cornell, Chairman and CEO of Target, said in a statement, “We'll also maintain limits on select products and would ask guests to purchase only what they need so there's enough supply to accommodate this increased demand."

Stores will open at their scheduled times. Across the U.S. the first hour after opening each Wednesday will be reserved for vulnerable guests. The vulnerable group includes the elderly and people who have health issues. The stores will close no later than 9 p.m. Stores that presently close earlier than 9 p.m. will continue to do so.

Why It Matters

Target has already instituted measures such as rigorous cleaning, leveraging its supplies to ensure the availability of key products, waving its absenteeism policy to cover 14 days of quarantine, and closing all Target Pizza Huts, Snack bars, Starbucks and the like.

The company runs 1,900 stores in the U.S., where people can purchase food and medicine. Retail rival Walmart Inc. WMT has also cut its hours of operation from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. and said its working to keep stores stocked and prices fair.

Kroger Co KR, which runs stores such as City Market, Dillons, and Ralphs, has announced adjusted store hours based on location. The CEO of Kroger revealed that they had hired 2000 people and have 10,000 new openings to deal with the demands caused by the pandemic.

Kroger, Dollar General Corp. DG, and Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize N.V. ADRNY run Stop&Shop are all providing vulnerable shoppers dedicated shopping hours according to CNBC.

Price Action 

Target shares traded 2.54% lower at $101 in the after-hours session on Tuesday. The shares had closed the regular session 10.49% higher at $103.63.

Photo Credit: Mike Kalasnik via Wikimedia.