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As Sales Plummet, Target Focuses on Online Services

Target will focus on its website, Target.com, and offline-online experiences such as order pickup and digital marketing, said the company's CIO.
The sign outside the Target store in Arvada
The sign outside the Target store is seen in Arvada, Colorado January 10, 2014. REUTERS/Rick Wilking
/ Source: Reuters

Target will focus on technologies that enhance customers' store experience and on other digital efforts, Chief Information Officer Mike McNamara said Tuesday.

Target will focus on its website, Target.com, and offline-online experiences such as order pickup and digital marketing, McNamara said in a blog post on the company's website.

A Target employee checks out a customer at a store in Falls Church
A Target employee checks out a customer at a store in Falls Church, Virginia May 14, 2012. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Last week's earnings report for sales ending July 30 showed a second-quarter earnings drop of almost 10 percent.

"Technology and supply chain are the new battlegrounds for retail," said McNamara. "The retailers with the strongest technology and supply chain will have the best chance of winning."

Target will also focus on efforts such as store replenishment and merchandising systems to keep its stores well stocked, he said.

The retailer is in the middle of a hiring boom, McNamara said, adding that the company had hired about 700 engineers since he joined as CIO in February 2015.