Target, Walmart battle for Charlotte shoppers with pricey remodels + new features
The battle between retail titans Target and Walmart for Charlotte shoppers is escalating.
Just last week, Target announced a multi-million dollar store remodeling plan nationwide, including in the Charlotte area, as Walmart ups the ante on its own store renovations.
The bid is for supremacy in groceries, convenience and technology, part of a multibillion-dollar sector in the Charlotte region.
Target is prioritizing a “food-forward” overhaul at three Charlotte-area stores to boost fresh food and grab-and-go options alongside expanded drive-up lanes. It’s part of the company’s $5 billion plan announced in March to open 30 stores nationwide this year, and 300 by 2035.
The plan also includes 130 full-store remodels with the list just recently released, including Charlotte-area stores.
Meanwhile, Walmart said last month it will remodel over 650 supercenters and neighborhood markets in more than 20 states, with 20 grand openings this year and in early 2027. This represents an even newer look compared to the sweeping remodel changes that began in 2022 at Walmart stores.
Walmart will remodel 37 North Carolina stores this year, including three in the Charlotte area. The new modernized layout expands on offerings in healthy foods, faster pickup services and delivery infrastructure.
Walmart has dominated the ultra-competitive $10.4 billion Charlotte grocery scene for the last six years, with about 22% of the local market share, according to the latest annual report by sales tracking firm Chain Store Guide.
Target typically lands around seventh by market share, behind hometown grocers Harris Teeter and Food Lion, Floriday-based Publix and Sam’s Club and Costco. Last year, Target captured 4.3% of the market share.
Target remodels in Charlotte and what to expect
Target officials confirmed these Charlotte-area stores are undergoing remodels:
- 8830 Albemarle Road in east Charlotte
- 12830 Walker Branch Road in Steele Creek
- 9531 South Blvd. in Pineville
Two other North Carolina stores in the plan are in Winston-Salem and Raleigh.
The new stores will have a layout, Target told The Charlotte Observer, that will be 30% larger than the chain average store.
The store also will have expanded same-day services including drive-up lanes and more efficient order pickup areas to cut down on wait times.
Other renovations include new layouts, updated visual displays and localized murals.
Target opened one store in the Charlotte region last year, in Indian Land, South Carolina, and has plans for another. The Minnesota-based retailer bought more than 15 acres off Old York Road in Rock Hill in December for $7.3 million as part of the 97-acre Newport Commons development to build a 148,000-square-foot discount superstore.
Target has nearly 2,000 stores, with 17 in the Charlotte market.
What to expect at Walmart remodels in Charlotte
The Walmart Supercenter at 3850 E. Independence Blvd. recently held its grand reopening as the first of nine Charlotte-area stores to undergo the retail giant’s latest renovation.
Expect a modernized layout, upgraded technology and more services. Other local supercenters undergoing remodels this year are:
- 7735 N. Tryon St., Charlotte
- 8180 S. Tryon St., Charlotte
- 701 Hawley Ave., Belmont
- 781 Leonard Ave., Albemarle
- 1876 Main St W., Locust
- 805 Highway 9 Bypass W., Lancaster, South Carolina
- 4875 Old York Road, Rock Hill
- Neighborhood Market, 1818 Northwest Blvd., Newton
Over the last five years, Walmart has spent more than $848 million upgrading its North Carolina stores.
Walmart has already remodeled more than a dozen area stores.
In September, the company announced plans to invest $300 million to open another fulfillment center in Kings Mountain, west of Charlotte, promising to create more than 300 jobs. The 1.2 million–square-foot facility at 799 Sara Lee Access Road is expected to open in 2027.
Walmart has seven distribution centers in North Carolina, including in Shelby, and a fulfillment center in Troutman. In 2021, Walmart purchased Iredell County’s largest speculative building for $69 million in Troutman, 35 miles north of Charlotte, with plans to create 500 jobs.
Walmart has 32 supercenters, eight neighborhood markets and seven Sam’s Clubs in the Charlotte region, and more than 62,000 employees in North Carolina.
