“The store is the core part of our strategy for physical and digital growth,” Mahowald said during a panel discussion. “Our 1,800 stores are our strategic advantage. We want to use our box for fulfillment strategies.”

Target will have remodeled 1,000 of its stores by the end of 2020, she said. The upgrades will include new interior design and decor, along with new technologies that will help facilitate omni-channel sales, she added.

“We’re embracing stores,” she said, pointing out that the majority of new Target stores will be in the 20,000-to-50,000-square-foot range, reflecting a prototype designed to fit into dense urban markets and college towns.

And the emphasis on physical stores is only helping drive overall sales, she said. “They work together; in 2018 we had our best comparable-store traffic and digital sales.”