Target is firing over Amazon’s bows with free two-day shipping this holiday season. The retailer normally requires a $35 minimum order—or a Target loyalty card— to qualify for two-day shipping. Amazon (AMZN) requires customers to be Prime members for $119 a year to qualify for two-day shipping.
In August, Target (TGT) announced its best quarterly results in more than a decade, as well as increased visits to its stores. It also bought Shipt last year for handling same-day deliveries. Shipt is now available in 200 markets, up from 160 in August, the AP reports.
Despite the e-tailing investments, Target CEO Brian Cornell estimates that it will do 80% of its business in stores, the Wall Street Journal reports. Target is hiring 120,000 temporary employees starting at $12 an hour for its holiday push during one of the tightest U.S. labor markets in recent decades. It is also expanding its Drive Up drive-through order pickup option to nearly 1,000 stores.
Customers can get Target’s free two-day shipping starting on Thanksgiving, Nov. 22 this year, through Dec. 22. While Target has offered free shipping during previous holiday seasons, it did not guarantee two-day delivery.
Another novelty this holiday season is the bankruptcy of Toys R Us, which is costing toymakers jobs and opens opportunities for retailers able to pick up the slack.