PHOTOS: Target Opens Upper East Side Store

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — More than one year after it was announced, the Upper East Side's new Target store opened Wednesday morning. The 23,000-square-foot "small-format" store will offer a selection of goods curated to meet the needs of neighborhood residents such as home goods, groceries, clothing and electronics.

Shoppers were already lining the aisles of the Target on Third Avenue between East 70th and 69th streets Wednesday. Store Director Anthony Rodriguez said Wednesday that the early reception to the store has been positive and that the store will adapt in the coming weeks to best serve its customers as the team learns the neighborhood's preferences.

The new store is even shrouded in a bit of mystery. A giant safe door was found attached to one of the space's interior walls during construction, and store designers decided to preserve it to be used as a decoration completely unique to the Upper East Side Target. Rodriguez didn't want to speculate about what's behind the door, but said that once Target finds out what it was used for the store may install some sort of informational plaque.

The Third Avenue store is part of a larger expansion by Target into urban markets. Target plans to open 130 "small format" stores nationwide by the end of 2019. The stores differ from larger Target department stores by offering a selection of items curated to meet the needs of its local area. The Upper East Side small-format store is the sixth Target has opened in New York City.

Rodriguez said some larger items such as furniture that are carried at larger Target stores such as East 116th Street aren't available at the new store, but store employees can work with shoppers to order these items online and arrange in-store pickup.

About 80 employees were hired to be part of the Third Avenue Target's team, according to a company press release. Of those hires, the vast majority are new hires as opposed to transfers from other Target locations, Rodriguez said.

"The staff here is about 95% new hires," Rodriguez said. "We're super excited that we are able to source the community to staff the store."

The new Target is located in a retail space attached to The Fairfax condominium. Target negotiated its lease for the space with TF Cornerstone, the development company behind The Fairfax.

A grand opening ceremony for the new Upper East Side Target store will be held on Sunday, Oct. 20, company officials said. The store will be open from 7 a.m. - 10 p.m. on weekdays, 8 a.m. - 11 p.m. on Saturdays and 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays.

Check out photos of Target's new Upper East Side location below: