Target planning 8 new stores across the US as it debuts snazzy new employee uniforms

Target announced this week a slew of new stores and the upcoming debut of a line of stylish employee uniforms.

The company will open eight new stores in the Hamptons, New York; Ohio, Mississippi, Texas, Virginia, and Tennessee on October 11.

Target said last year it planned to invest an additional $1 billion on top of $5 billion already allocated to build new stores, and remodel and refit existing locations, according to Retail Dive.

The company celebrated the opening of its 2,000th store in March in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. Six more locations opened in May in Arizona, Missouri, New Jersey, and North Carolina. The company is also remodeling 130 existing locations.

The retailer also announced a new collection of employee apparel designed by the company's in-house design team and with input from fashion designer and Target Creative Director At Large, Isaac Mizrahi.

Mizrahi has an eponymous fashion brand and was previously a guest judge on reality TV show, Project Runway All Stars. He joined Target in June to help design products and to mentor the in-house design team, according to the company.

The new employee outfits will be called Collection186, named for the specific shade of red used by Target, Pantone 186.

“We designed Collection186 with our store team members in mind — offering them more options to their wardrobe that are unmistakably Target," Gena Fox, senior vice president of design, told Retail Dive.

She said along with Mizrahi, the company's in-house designers "created pieces that feel fresh, expressive and thoughtfully functional for how our team moves through their day.”

The upcoming apparel release includes crew neck T-shirts, polo shirts, cardigans, blazers, and vests, among other items.

It has been a successful second quarter in which Target's net sales increased by 5.3 percent from a year prior to $26.5 billion.