In June 2024, Target+ and Shopify announced a new partnership. This was great news for Shopify sellers looking to expand into additional sales channels.
Getting accepted to sell on Target Plus has traditionally been difficult, but it is becoming more accessible each year. This coming year, it may become even easier, especially for brands that are already selling on Shopify.
In August, we started seeing Target Plus notifications inside the Shopify dashboard. At the time, these notifications appeared only for enterprise-level Shopify Plus accounts, not for Basic or Advanced plans.
Here is a quote from the Target+ press release:
The new partnership with Shopify will expand Target Plus through a hand-selected assortment of new and on-trend products and brands like True Classic, Caden Lane and more, giving consumers even more options to explore at affordable prices and with exceptional quality. Target also will be the first mass retailer to work with Shopify to bring select merchants' products into its physical stores in the months to come, offering shoppers even more new brands to discover.
However, if you have already been selling on Shopify and have a strong track record, your chances of being approved are much better today than they were last year.
The first step is to apply to Target Plus and make sure all of your business information is accurate and transparent. Below is a list based on the application requirements.
Before applying, make sure your business can meet the following requirements:
1. Your business is registered in the U.S. and can provide:
- U.S. business address
- W-9
- Employer Identification Number (EIN) — Social Security numbers are not accepted
- Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS)
2. Your business can meet Target Plus shipping requirements:
- Can ship using approved carriers (UPS, USPS, or FedEx)
- Can fulfill all orders from within the United States
- Can fulfill within a 24-hour handling time and 5 or fewer business days in transit
- Cannot use competitor fulfillment services
3. All products must have GS1-certified UPCs on the product itself:
- GS1: Authentic barcodes powered by GS1 uniquely identify your brand and products in e-commerce
- UPC: Universal Product Code is a barcode format used worldwide for tracking retail products
4. Your business can meet onboarding requirements:
- 75% of the agreed SKU count must be live within 75 days of signing the Target Plus contract
5. Your business can provide size charts for all wearable items in grid (non-image) format
- You can register any ESIM/Hazmat items with the third-party compliance partner UL-WERCSmart (WERCS)
- UL-WERCSmart is Target’s third-party compliance partner that manages product environmental and safety data. For Target Plus, these items must be registered before item data can be reviewed or approved by Target.
6. Your application submission must include an Excel file with total assortment details for all SKUs you want to bring to Target Plus, using these column headers:
Apply to Target Plus and make sure all information is accurate and transparent.
- A. Partner SKU
- B. Barcode (EAN)
- C. Brand
- D. Product Title
- E. Product Description
- F. Partner Item Category
- G. Primary Image URL
- H. Ship Speed (Ground, 2-day, 1-day)
- I. Retail Price
- J. Partner Item Subcategory
Target’s team will review all submissions and reach out if your assortment aligns with current priorities. Responses are not guaranteed.
Let’s assume you get accepted and now need to figure out how to get your products onto Target. There are two ways to do this, and both require a connector.
Shopify has a connector called Shopify Marketplace Connect. See the screenshot below 👇
Below I included a link to install the app.
Do I recommend Shopify Marketplace Connect?
At the moment, I would not strongly recommend this connector, especially for catalogs with more than 35 SKUs. However, I do believe the app will improve over time and could become a strong option later on.
What connector do you recommend?
For Target+, I have worked with four different connectors, and the best one—with the strongest support—has been Acenda. If you work with a connector, expect costs of $500+ per month, so make sure you have enough SKUs to justify the investment.
Here is a link to Acenda 👀👇
B2B selling on Target 🥳 > link below!