Target Adds Holiday Safety Measures, New Systems to Reduce Crowding

Target rolled out multiple changes to its holiday operations on November 26, 2025, with the stated goal of improving guest safety and smoothing store traffic during one of the busiest retail periods of the year. Local Minnesota outlet Bring Me The News reported the measures, which Target tied to its holiday planning and accompanying news releases.

The measures include a decision not to open stores early on Black Friday, a new reservation and queue website that will text shoppers when it is their turn to enter, and a wider rollout of the retailer's MyCheckout devices, adding roughly 1,000 units. MyCheckout devices let team members ring up guests anywhere in the store to reduce lines at registers. Target also said it would expand contactless Wallet payments, double Drive Up parking spots to handle more curbside orders, and remove barcode scanning at pickup so guests show the app to staff rather than waiting for items to be scanned.

Those operational changes are intended to reduce large indoor gatherings and long waits, shifts that affect how frontline team members will work during high traffic days. The broader rollout of mobile checkout units will likely increase time spent by team members on the sales floor performing transactions, rather than staffing fixed registers. The reservation website should cut the size of physical lines but will create new duties around managing a digital queue and coordinating timed entry. Changes to pickup procedures and Drive Up could speed order turnover, reduce close contact and lower the need for barcode scanning tasks.

For employees, the measures mean different staffing patterns, additional training on mobile devices and contactless systems, and altered customer interaction routines during the busiest shopping stretch. For shoppers, Target is betting that appointment style entry, more mobile payment options and decentralized checkout will deliver faster service and fewer crowded entryways. The moves reflect a broader retail trend toward technology driven crowd management and contactless service during peak seasons.