Target expands accessibility features to improve shopping for disabled guests

Target’s accessible self-checkout pairs braille with physical navigation buttons and a custom tactile controller. The company is treating accessibility as part of how a store works, from navigation and checkout to packaging and digital help, which is the same place Big Lots associates feel the pressure when a shopper needs a little more time, a clearer route, or a different way to get through the aisle.

What Target actually changed

Target updated its accessibility fact sheet on July 8, 2026, putting accessibility into product development, merchandising, store environments, and digital experiences.

The most concrete example is accessible self-checkout. The system includes braille and high-contrast button icons, a headphone jack with adjustable volume controls, physical navigation buttons, a dedicated info key, and a custom tactile controller. Target first announced the self-checkout on Sept. 26, 2025. The company said it was designed with and for guests with disabilities, and that the rollout would begin during the 2025 holiday season and continue into early 2026. Target also said it co-developed the system with touchscreen partner Elo and worked with the National Federation of the Blind during development, design, and testing.

Adrienne Costanzo, Target’s executive vice president and chief stores officer, put the point in plain language: shopping should be “easy, move fast and feel good.” Steve Decker, Target’s accessibility manager, who is blind and helped lead the project, said accessibility can drive “innovation and growth.”

Why the service model matters at the register

Target’s Aira service shows another practical piece of the puzzle. The service is available at no cost to guests while they are shopping in stores or online. It can help guests navigate store layouts, locate products or departments, read labels, signage or packaging, and shop Target.com. That kind of support does not replace associates, but it can keep a guest moving when a store is busy or when visual instructions are not enough.

For Big Lots teams, the lesson is to think beyond the checkout lane. A shopper who cannot quickly find cleaning supplies, compare a label, or read a shelf sign is often the same shopper who will ask three associates the same question, then leave frustrated if nobody can solve it.

The same logic applies to signage and navigation. If Target is building accessibility into the shopping path, Big Lots can borrow the operational parts that do not require major capital spending: clearer department markers, consistent aisle numbering, readable shelf tags, and a faster handoff from the front end to the right associate.

Packaging can save time before a shopper reaches checkout

Target’s update also reaches into packaging, one of the easiest places for retailers to create avoidable friction. Its packaging team partnered with the Arthritis Foundation on Ease of Use packaging guidelines, and it worked with occupational therapists on Figmint packaging that uses easy-open tabs plus exposed grips and handles. Target also includes adaptive apparel and sensory-friendly products as part of the same accessibility approach.

That is relevant for a discount chain like Big Lots because many of the most common front-end headaches start with packaging. If a box is hard to open, a customer will ask for help. If grips are too small, tabs are too stiff, or labels are too cramped, associates end up doing the work that smarter packaging could have prevented. For shoppers buying household basics, storage, kitchenware, or seasonal goods, packaging that opens more easily can save time and reduce embarrassment at the shelf.

A practical Big Lots playbook would start with the simplest fixes:

• Put the clearest signage at the front end, service desk, and busiest departments, using high contrast and larger type where possible.

• Train associates to give precise directions, not vague ones. A customer should hear a route, not a shrug.

• Keep checkout assistance visible and easy to request for shoppers who need help reading a screen, using a card reader, or handling a self-checkout prompt.

• Flag packaging pain points quickly, especially on items that older shoppers, people with arthritis, or low-vision customers are most likely to buy.

• Make it normal for an associate to offer a quieter route, a better-lit aisle, or a quicker escort to the right product.

Why Big Lots should treat accessibility as an operating issue

Big Lots has a very different business moment than Target, but the customer-service lesson still fits. The chain operated 1,392 stores in 48 states as of May 4, 2024 and had an e-commerce platform. It filed voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy petitions on Sept. 9, 2024, and the cases were converted to Chapter 7 effective Nov. 10, 2025, with Alfred T. Giuliano appointed Chapter 7 trustee.

CDC disability prevalence estimates range from 8% to more than 30% of the population depending on how disability is defined. A 2022 NHIS-based estimate cited by the American Foundation for the Blind found that 50.18 million U.S. adults reported trouble seeing even with glasses or contact lenses, or said they were blind or unable to see at all.

Walmart in December 2024 offered Aira’s visual interpreting service free to blind and low-vision customers nationwide. Big Lots states on its jobs page that it is committed to building an inclusive workplace where diverse abilities, experiences, opinions and identities are valued, and its contact page remains active in 2026.