Steve Decker, blind since birth and lead accessibility consultant at Target does a lot of online shopping with the help of tools that read text out loud.
But like many shoppers, regardless of ability, he still likes to come to stores in person to gauge the freshness of produce or to feel the texture of a sweater. To do so, he often has to rely on store employees to walk him around the store and direct him to the correct shelf or rack.
Now he’s helped add another option for consumers like him when they shop at some Target stores this holiday. The Minneapolis-based retailer, where Decker works on an 18-person accessibility team, has expanded a pilot program to 600 stores to offer for free a service called Aira for those who are blind or have limited vision.