Is the Target Boycott Really Effective?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what companies are learning is to never try to appease the left. Target wouldn't be in this position if they'd stayed neutral.

Target will likely never get these customers back. It isn't about appeasement. It is about not bowing to racism and dictators.

Target won't get me back for two reasons. 1) I found out I can effectively live without them. I shopped there at least once a week, spending nearly 1k a month. Learning that I don't actually need or miss them has been eye-opening. 2) I really disliked how they played in our faces. I legit thought that's who Target was, and it deeply bothers me that they are two-faced. I won't get over it, mainly because having so many other options gives me a way not to have to.

If a company is going to be that conniving, make sure you don't have viable competitors.

[Anonymous]

I think the Target experience has been an interesting moment for corporate America. The lesson is never, ever chase politics as a strategy for growth. Target went all in with the progressive priorities of 2022. And now they are reaping the whirlwind from the invariable blowback.

The CEO and the Board at Target are idiots. They had a good brand - reasonably good products at a reasonably good price point. That works everywhere. But they chose to change their business based on a sliver of time in American politics. Idiots. Now everyone hates Target.

Corporations need to be much better about their CEOs and boards and senior management. Because when you get things wrong, it's very costly. The problems with Target are self-inflicted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the Target experience has been an interesting moment for corporate America. The lesson is never, ever chase politics as a strategy for growth. Target went all in with the progressive priorities of 2022. And now they are reaping the whirlwind from the invariable blowback.

The CEO and the Board at Target are idiots. They had a good brand - reasonably good products at a reasonably good price point. That works everywhere. But they chose to change their business based on a sliver of time in American politics. Idiots. Now everyone hates Target.

Corporations need to be much better about their CEOs and boards and senior management. Because when you get things wrong, it's very costly. The problems with Target are self-inflicted.

That didn’t hurt them. Reversing those policies just to appease Trump is what did it. Target’s most loyal customers were disgusted by that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what companies are learning is to never try to appease the left. Target wouldn't be in this position if they'd stayed neutral.

Stores have a target audience(s). (Pun intended.) People who fall outside of that may still shop there. Target betrayed its primary audience. What’s so difficult to understand?

It's target audience is people looking to spend money. It's not a political organization. Liberals are not its target audience. Thanks for listening to my talk on capitalism.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the Target experience has been an interesting moment for corporate America. The lesson is never, ever chase politics as a strategy for growth. Target went all in with the progressive priorities of 2022. And now they are reaping the whirlwind from the invariable blowback.

The CEO and the Board at Target are idiots. They had a good brand - reasonably good products at a reasonably good price point. That works everywhere. But they chose to change their business based on a sliver of time in American politics. Idiots. Now everyone hates Target.

Corporations need to be much better about their CEOs and boards and senior management. Because when you get things wrong, it's very costly. The problems with Target are self-inflicted.

That didn’t hurt them. Reversing those policies just to appease Trump is what did it. Target’s most loyal customers were disgusted by that.

This. For some reason the CEOs convinced themselves that most people supported Trump and forgot about their whole customer base.

I stopped shopping in Target in February after being a loyal customer for over 15 years. Have not been back in a store or ordered online since. Would usually go every single week and drop at least $50+ over what I planned to buy.

I will never shop there again, since it's obvious they were just pretending to support women, as well as people of color and LGBT people.

I've already found other sources (local grocery store, Costco, local organic market) and developed other non shopping habits as well as still being big mad at them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what companies are learning is to never try to appease the left. Target wouldn't be in this position if they'd stayed neutral.

Stores have a target audience(s). (Pun intended.) People who fall outside of that may still shop there. Target betrayed its primary audience. What’s so difficult to understand?

It's target audience is people looking to spend money. It's not a political organization. Liberals are not its target audience. Thanks for listening to my talk on capitalism.

Exactly./ To the extent a store becomes a vehicle for political messaging, it risks irritating and alienating some of its customers. Remaining politically agnostic is the sensible and astute thing for businesses, not taking positions on culturally divisive topics.

[Anonymous]

Leftists angry the favoritism isn't continuing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what companies are learning is to never try to appease the left. Target wouldn't be in this position if they'd stayed neutral.

Stores have a target audience(s). (Pun intended.) People who fall outside of that may still shop there. Target betrayed its primary audience. What’s so difficult to understand?

It's target audience is people looking to spend money. It's not a political organization. Liberals are not its target audience. Thanks for listening to my talk on capitalism.

Except…yes they were. Target positioned itself to be popular with liberals— contrasting itself to WalMart, paying marginally better, being overtly progressive, positioning itself in city centers.

If the people who care about those things stop shopping in your stores, well, it’s a long drive from the places people who don’t care about those things live and they don’t tend to have the same disposable income…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Leftists angry the favoritism isn't continuing.

And that anger cost billions of dollars and the CEO his job. Don’t say no one told them this was coming…

[Anonymous]

The question I’ve always had for Target is— who did they think was coming to their rescue? Did they think Trumpers were going to flock to their stores to spend their money? What was the calculus on kneeling to Trump?

Costco shareholders rejected anti-DEIA initiatives and are significantly richer for it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what companies are learning is to never try to appease the left. Target wouldn't be in this position if they'd stayed neutral.

Stores have a target audience(s). (Pun intended.) People who fall outside of that may still shop there. Target betrayed its primary audience. What’s so difficult to understand?

It's target audience is people looking to spend money. It's not a political organization. Liberals are not its target audience. Thanks for listening to my talk on capitalism.

Except…yes they were. Target positioned itself to be popular with liberals— contrasting itself to WalMart, paying marginally better, being overtly progressive, positioning itself in city centers.

If the people who care about those things stop shopping in your stores, well, it’s a long drive from the places people who don’t care about those things live and they don’t tend to have the same disposable income…

I'm telling you that this is a dumb business strategy, as Target has no doubt learned. They could have just continued to position themselves as a more upscale and fashionable Walmart and they would not have had this issue. Costco never did a fraction of the things that Target did to support the progressive movement, and which one of them is coming out on top? The moment you declare a business to have a political affiliation, you alienate half the population and then become entirely beholden to the other half, who will now have you by the balls. The left has Target by the balls and is hurting for it. The right hates it, the left finds its leftism insufficiently "authentic" and it's distracted from its central mission of supplying food and textiles.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think what companies are learning is to never try to appease the left. Target wouldn't be in this position if they'd stayed neutral.

Target will likely never get these customers back. It isn't about appeasement. It is about not bowing to racism and dictators.

Target won't get me back for two reasons. 1) I found out I can effectively live without them. I shopped there at least once a week, spending nearly 1k a month. Learning that I don't actually need or miss them has been eye-opening. 2) I really disliked how they played in our faces. I legit thought that's who Target was, and it deeply bothers me that they are two-faced. I won't get over it, mainly because having so many other options gives me a way not to have to.

If a company is going to be that conniving, make sure you don't have viable competitors.

This for me, as well. I hadn't shopped there in 7 months. I bought a few things for my kid's dorm room there b/c it's cheap and will get abused in a dorm so I didn't want expensive. But other than that, they lost me. With fall and the holidays coming up, I used to hit Target a lot. No more as I can find other things elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Leftists angry the favoritism isn't continuing.

How did Target show liberals favoritism? How did they disfavor conservatives? This ought to be good . . .

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Leftists angry the favoritism isn't continuing.

How did Target show liberals favoritism? How did they disfavor conservatives? This ought to be good . . .

You cannot be serious. Most liberals understand quite well that Target positioned itself as a liberal brand. You're the only one on this thread too clueless to perceive that. How many conservative brands sell "tuck friendly children's swimsuits"?

[Anonymous]

All this antagonism because they stopped selling tuck wear!!