The 5% REDcard Rewards program Target launched last fall has contributed to sales results and served as a game changer on the pricing front with Walmart. Savvy shoppers are increasingly realizing the additional 5% savings they receive by using their REDcard can result in the price of a basket of food and consumables at Target slipping below the price of a comparable basket at Walmart.

Now, Lowe’s is looking to accomplish a similar feat against Home Depot and has launched its own variant of the 5% program just six months after Target’s nationwide rollout.

Target announced that it will adopt green refrigeration technologies in its stores as part of its new membership in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) GreenChill program.

Right about now Target might be wishing it hadn’t walked away from the lawn and garden business. That’s basically what the company did last year when it shuttered outdoor garden centers and eliminated live plants sales. Now, spring is under way nationwide and consumers looking to refresh their yards and outdoor living spaces are being forced to shop at competitors.

Oh sure, Target still offers a wide assortment of such outdoor living products as seating, grills, garden statuary, tools, chemicals, seeds, etc., but the products are merchandised inside stores in an area devoted to seasonal merchandising where the presentation is far less impactful. Shoppers in the market for lawn and garden products might be able to find what they need at Target, but that’s assuming they even come inside the store to shop the department.

RadioShack reported a $28.9 million increase in kiosk sales driven in large part by the roll-out of the company’s mobile centers in Target stores.