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In 1902, entrepreneur George Dayton capitalized on opportunity and acquired the property of the burned-down Westminster Presbyterian Church in downtown Minneapolis to open the Goodfellow Dry Goods store.
The genesis of what would eventually grow into Dayton's department store chain and later the Target Corporation retail empire.
Dayton convinced the Reuben Simon Goodfellow Company to become his store's first tenant, establishing the first link in the long chain of acquisitions and mergers that defined Target's ascent in the 20th century retail industry.
Though Dayton himself lacked experience in retail, his business acumen and devout Presbyterian faith laid the foundation for the conservative management style that would guide the company in its early years.
In 1929, the Dayton Company made its inaugural acquisition by purchasing the Minneapolis-based J.B. Hudson & Son jewelry store, a diversification effort that transpired unfortunately close to the Wall Street Crash that heralded the Great Depression's arrival.
Though J.B. Hudson & Son generated losses during the 1930s economic crisis, the Dayton Company retained the long-standing jeweler and set the stage for many more acquisitions and mergers over the coming decades that fueled Target's rise.
This small yet momentous deal in 1929 foreshadowed Dayton Company's knack for capitalizing on opportunities during adversity, a skill soon to be tested by the hard times ahead.
In a seminal 1969 deal, the Dayton Company merged with the venerable Detroit-based department store chain J.L. Hudson Company, forming the Dayton-Hudson Corporation and establishing a retailing conglomerate encompassing five major chains, including the burgeoning Target discount stores.
Now the 14th largest US retailer boasting enhanced growth prospects, Dayton-Hudson represented the fused destinies of two Midwest merchandising institutions, though Target would soon eclipse all other divisions to become the company's main engine and revenue fountain.
This landscape-changing merger set the stage for Target's ascendance in the coming decades under the Dayton-Hudson banner, which laid sturdy foundations for the organization eventually known, fittingly, as Target Corporation.
Eager to expand its empire, Dayton-Hudson acquired the West Coast Mervyn's department store chain in 1978, augmenting its assets to become the nation's 7th largest general merchandise retailer as the company set its sights on national scale.
Still overshadowed by the increasingly mighty Target stores, Mervyn's 300 units across 16 states represented Dayton-Hudson's determination to compete coast-to-coast with traditional department stores alongside its discount arm.
This major 1978 purchase fueled Dayton-Hudson's ambition to blanket America with bricks-and-mortar outlets, but the rising Target chain would soon render Mervyn's a mere sidebar in the company's unfolding story.
Dayton-Hudson began 1986 by making one of its most strategically significant acquisitions, purchasing 50 Gemco stores from Lucky Stores that both dramatically expanded Target’s West Coast presence and positioned it as the dominant Southern California discounter.
Inserting Target into primacy in America’s largest state validated its ambitious goal of battling coast-to-coast with the likes of Kmart.
This opportunistic 1986 Gemco purchase proved pivotal in Target’s evolution into a national retail juggernaut, setting the stage for unrelenting growth in the 1990s and ascendance to a household name.
Ever diversifying while still augmenting its core discount stores, in 1988 Dayton-Hudson acquired Team Electronics, a specialty chain selling audio and video equipment under successful merchant Stephen Pistner.T
hough small next to Target, Team illustrated Dayton-Hudson’s penchant for snapping up proven retail concepts that could complement its flagship chain.
This minor yet strategic 1988 purchase contributed to Target’s gradual segmentation into specialized departments catering to contemporary shopper needs beyond general discount merchandise.
Turning back to department stores after a long interlude, Dayton-Hudson in 1990 acquired the Chicago-based regional giant Marshall Field’s from British parent company Batus Inc.
This surprising move reunited the Dayton’s and Marshall Field’s brands as stablemates for the first time since their early 20th century rivalry.
Though seeming a departure amidst Target’s torrential rise, the Marshall Field’s deal in 1990 pointed to parent Dayton-Hudson’s enduring belief in diversified retail portfolios despite increasing reliance on its high-flying discounter.
Having risen meteorically in the 1990s, Target orchestrated one last strategic acquisition in the 20th century, purchasing Fedco and its 10 stores in 1999 to further consolidate its dominant West Coast presence.
By picking up this small yet meaningful batch of stores, Target leveraged the struggling Fedco chain to slightly expand its California footprint before the millennium's close.
This opportunistic purchase in the waning days of 1999 capped a prolific decade of growth for Target, which entered the 21st century as an undisputed national retail titan.
In 2017, Target moved to compete with Amazon and Walmart in the rapidly growing online grocery segment by acquiring Shipt, an internet-based same day delivery platform.
This $550 million deal to bring Shipt's logistics in-house demonstrated Target's drive to match rivals in nimble ecommerce capabilities even while thriving in bricks-and-mortar retail.
The Shipt purchase in 2017 heralded Target's vigorous efforts to integrate top-tier delivery solutions with its stores' unmatched in-person shopping experience.
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