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Target suffers eighth week of foot-traffic losses since caving on DEI (www.retailbrew.com)

submitted 3 days ago by alyaza@beehaw.org to c/usnews@beehaw.org

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Target saw foot traffic fall for the eighth consecutive week, extending a losing streak that began just a few days after the company announced it would end its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) program in late January.

For the week that began March 17, foot traffic fell 5.7% YoY for Target, according to data from Placer.ai. That's compared to the 7.1% it fell last week, and an average weekly decline over the last eight weeks of 6.2%.

In a March 4 earnings call, when it reported a 3.1% Q4 loss and a non-specified sales decline in February, Target executives were bullish about its Easter assortment boosting business. But if it has so far, it's not reflected in the foot-traffic data. What may have taken the spring out of the Easter Bunny's hop for Target is a 40-plus day boycott coinciding with Lent (so ending on Easter) spearheaded by Black clergy for which more than 150,000 have signed up, exceeding organizers' stated goal of 100,000.

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[–] alyaza@beehaw.org 26 points 3 days ago (2 children)

maybe you can be skeptical of the data source--but i think it is fairly reasonable to conclude, at this point, that trying to ditch DEI to placate conservatives has at the very least not helped Target

[–] Powderhorn@beehaw.org 18 points 3 days ago

Target positioned itself in a specific way that set it up for this self-imposed wound. "Come shop here so you don't have to deal with Walmart" only works when your slightly-more-affluent consumer base is racist and sexist as fuck.

As it happens, they're not.

[–] Icarus@beehaw.org 10 points 3 days ago

Except for my medications, which I am now working to move to another pharmacy, I haven't bought anything at target since I learned about the boycott

[–] nick@midwest.social 6 points 3 days ago

Lmaooooooo get rekt.

[–] 52fighters@lemmy.sdf.org 5 points 3 days ago

I still know a bunch of conservatives who are still boycotting them over the trans bathroom issue.

[–] don@lemm.ee 4 points 3 days ago

Fuck ‘em.

[–] mvilain@fedia.io 2 points 3 days ago

Yep. I've joined the buycot for Lent. I put off all purchases there until after Easter and Passover are over.

[–] blitzen@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I concerned that the declining traffic is attributed to their anti-DEI move, when overall consumer spending is likely down. I’m Not saying it boycotts haven’t had an effect, but that may be hard to measure.

[–] Powderhorn@beehaw.org 6 points 3 days ago

Inasmuch as polling would be a useless gauge, that's true. But it's rather simple do to a YoY or QoQ compared with peer retailers. Given that both Walmart and Amazon have also abandoned DEI initiatives, that adds noise, but there will definitely be parseable data.

I somehow doubt shareholders will be thrilled with the final numbers.