Target is bringing same-day delivery to Florida

Same-day delivery for Target customers in Florida and Alabama will soon become a reality, the company announced Thursday.

The new service begins on Feb. 1 across 57 stores in Alabama and Florida.

At first, the participating Florida stores are in Tampa and South Florida. But by Feb. 8, the service is slated to expand to 12 other regions across the state – including Bradenton and Sarasota.

The setup will allow shoppers to make purchases using Shipt, a same-day delivery service that Target acquired last month for $550 million, where they can browse Target’s assortment of goods, including groceries, essentials, home, electronics and other products.

Shipt shoppers take the orders, visit the participating stores to buy the products and then deliver them to the customer on the same day, usually within a few hours, the company said.

The coverage is zip code based, the company says, so people can plug in their zip codes at Shipt.com/Target to check if their home or business is covered.

Target said it plans to make the service available for the majority of its stores before next holiday season.

“Our teams moved at lightning speed to get Target up and running on Shipt’s platform in less than eight weeks,” said John Mulligan, Target’s chief operating officer.

“And we’re not stopping there — we’ll keep expanding, with plans to offer Shipt’s services at nearly half our stores by the end of first quarter, and the majority of stores by the 2018 holiday season, making Target the first retailer to be able to offer same-day delivery in all major markets across the country.”

This story was originally published January 25, 2018 at 11:41 AM with the headline "Target is bringing same-day delivery to Florida."