Target news 

Target has outlined the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the business, including its sales performance and store development plans. Surge in sales and traffic Target started to see a shift in sales in the fourth week of February, with an increase in traffic and comparable store sales. Starting in mid-March, the surge in traffic and sales became stronger, concentrated in the ...

We review Target’s fourth quarter performance and its strategic priorities for the year ahead. Key numbers Fourth quarter revenue increased 1.8% to $23.4bn Q4 comparable store sales increased 1.5% Comparable digital sales up 20% Operating income increased 7.3% to $1.2bn Full year revenue increased 3.7% to $78.1bn Full year operating income up 13.3% to $4.7bn For 2020/21...

Target has introduced a new logo and colour palette for its same-day delivery service, Shipt. Fully integrated into the Target platform Target acquired Shipt in 2017. The deal enabled the retailer to advance its plans to offer a same-day delivery service by around two years. The on-demand delivery service has been fully integrated into the Target platform, including its website and app, and...

Target’s holiday sales came in below expectations, with the company citing weaknesses in key non-food categories. Slowing store and digital sales Over the combined November/December period, Target’s comparable store sales increased 1.4%, below expectations. Having delivered comp sales of 4.5% in Q3, and a strong performance up to that point on the bac of major investments in stores, digital a...

We look at the first sales forecasts coming in for the Black Friday shopping event in the US. Ecommerce sales hit $4.2bn on Thanksgiving Day Data from Adobe Analytics revealed that ecommerce sales increased 14.5% to $4.2bn on Thanksgiving Day. This is the first time that sales through the channel have exceeded $4.0bn on this day. Large retailers, those with sales in excess of $1bn, saw the ...

We look at Target’s strong third quarter performance and how it plans to win this holiday season. Top-line results Target’s third quarter revenue increased by 4.7% to $18.7bn, with comparable store sales up 4.5%. Comparable digital sales increased 31%. Operating income increased 22.3% to $1.0bn, with the stronger than expected increase in profitability driven by an improved gross margin. Th...

With many retailers starting their Black Friday promotions and deals early, we look at how this key shopping event is evolving in the US. Fewer shopping days Black Friday shopping traditionally takes place on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day. This year, the key shopping event is scheduled for November 29. However, many retailers are already running their Black Friday promotions, a signal o...

As excitement builds for Halloween, we share three initiatives helping widen the event’s appeal, offer ease and an element of surprise to customers. Asda: appealing to all ages Asda’s online hub offers a range of Halloween promotions, targeted at adults. This includes an offer of 25% off when shoppers buy six or more bottles, widening the appeal of the event and driving basket size. Offe...

We look at the development of Target’s smaller format stores and how they’re enabling the retailer to build its presence across major US cities. On-track to operate 100 smaller format stores Launched initially as CityTarget in 2012 and Target Express in 2014, the retailer’s smaller, flexible format stores have become the main driver of Target’s physical store growth. With over 100 stores tr...

We recently visited Target’s stores to review the launch of its new private label range, Good & Gather. The first of 2,000 products landing in-store Target has started to roll-out its new private label food range, Good & Gather, with the first of 650 products introduced into its stores. The roll-out will continue over the next few months, before being ramped up to over 2,000 products by l...