Target Corporation, our featured company in Chapter 1 of Retail Management, is always thinking ahead. And with the recent economic problems caused by the worldwide recession, the retailer is planning some big changes, such as its new City store in Los Angeles (depicted in the photo below).

As reported by Matt Townsend in Businessweek: “In a landmark building in Chicago’s downtown Loop, Target is putting the final touches on what’s arguably its most radical experiment since bringing designer goods to the masses 15 years ago. In late July 2012, a new kind of Target—prosaically named City—opens on South State Street, just down the block from a Macy’s and across the street from a Forever 21. City stores, which are two-thirds the size of typical Target big boxes and may shrink further, are also opening this year in Los Angeles, Seattle, and San Francisco. The downsized outlets may be the key to unlocking the full value of Target’s cheap-chic playbook. Urban sophisticates who lust after a Michael Graves teapot or a Jason Wu skirt have mostly had to traipse to the burbs to get their fix. ‘It’s like we’ve been dating long distance,’ says Target Executive Vice President John Griffith, while conducting a guided tour of the unfinished Chicago store. ‘Now we’re going to be right in their backyard.’ ”

Click the photo for more from Businessweek about Target’s new approach to location planning.

 Photo source: Businessweek