Target Bets on Soho Playground Store to Repair Its Image

Target completed the redesign of its Soho store on Thursday, and it is betting roughly 70,000 daily passersby will like what they see. Gigi Guerra, vp of marketing, creative curation at Target, said that foot-traffic figure applies to the corner of Houston Street and Broadway, where the two-floor store now spans apparel, beauty and wellness, home decor, food and beverage, and toys and collectibles.

"This is a chance for us to test and play," Guerra said of the revamp. "It's a style and design playground for us, and we can take pieces from it and apply them to broader change."

What changed inside the store?

Target first took over the cast-iron Soho building, formerly a Hollister & Co., in 2022. It began redesigning the space in November 2025 to focus on curation and events. The Minneapolis-based retailer worked with design agency Something Special Studios on the result.

The changes include:

• A more subdued cherry shade to complement the signature bright red bullseye
• A photo station where shoppers can capture and print a selfie on site
• A beauty section built for creators to record content on-site
• An event space that has already hosted Karl-Anthony Towns and Jordyn Woods

The merchandising mix leans discovery-heavy: Kourtney Kardashian's Lemme gummy vitamins, the latest Nyx lip oil, leggings and Jake Shane's vegan gummies all sit under one roof. "Everything you see in the store is at any Target," Guerra said. "It's just the way we've curated and merchandised it [that's unique]. It actually shows how style-forward Target is."

Why is Target doing this now?

The store is a lab as much as a showroom. Guerra said the location lets Target's internal team see in real time which trends and products resonate with consumers. The shopper base splits evenly between New Yorkers and tourists, which makes the corner a useful national sample.

The timing is not incidental. Target faces increased competition, ongoing calls for boycotts tied to its rollback of diversity, equity and inclusion policies, and criticism for failing to take a stance against ICE activity in New York and the Twin Cities. Consumers have also complained about disorganized, understocked shelves at its locations.

The financial backdrop is steadier. In its most recent quarterly earnings report, published in August, Target posted a 5.3% increase in net sales to $26.5 billion for the second quarter of 2026.

Does curation actually move the needle?

Target has evidence it might. Guerra cited a national awareness study from the company that found 60% of consumers who knew about the store had an improved perception of Target. That is a rare hard number attached to a store redesign, and Target knows it.

The retailer is also late to the format, not early. Banana Republic revamped its Soho flagship in 2024 with on-site tailoring, concierge services and an event space. Macy's and Nordstrom have reworked their beauty floors with in-store services in recent months. Life Time added an on-site podcasting studio to its midtown location. Outside New York, Walmart — still absent from the five boroughs — has rolled out Beauty Bars with dedicated staff and more premium beauty curation to dozens of stores nationwide.

Matthew Arrington, Target's director of curation, framed the curation trend as a response to overload. "We're just inundated with things," he said. "There's so much choice, there's so much for anyone to take in. In a retail space like ours, even in one store, we're just trying to make that even easier. We've kind of already done that edit for you."

The Soho playbook will not stay in Soho. Guerra said Target plans to take pieces from the design- and curation-led format and apply them to broader change across the chain, which turns one store's photo station into a test the other several thousand are waiting on.