When will retailers stop berating politics?
The latest major corporation to feel the pain of waking up and going broke? Mega retailer Target.
On Monday, the giant posted its first quarterly sales slump in six years after customers outraged when Target bet on wake merchandise — including LGBTQ-related clothing for babies and “tuck-friendly” swimsuits for trans women and even for Pride Month it seemed to many, for children.
All the rubbish was disposed of after consumers protested. But the damage was done.
Target knows there have been big issues, too: “Traffic and sales trends have been impacted by the response to our Pride range,” he said CFO Michael Fiddleke.
Sales in stores and digital channels open for at least a year fell 5.4%. E-commerce sales declined almost twice as much at 10.5%.
The stock price is also down, down nearly 18% so far this year.
What’s really bizarre is that Target went along with its Pride plan after the Bud Light Dylan Mulvaney Disaster.
That is, executives knew that consumers were fed up with the ideology being foisted on them, and that they were willing to take their money elsewhere and be vocal about their dissatisfaction—and pressed on anyway.
If Bud Light is any example, Target is in for a tough time.
Especially since it’s not yet clear if the company’s top management has learned the lesson.
CEO Brian Cornell says Target will be “paying attention to timing, placement and presentation” during implementation. Future Displays of Woke Pride items.
So: More of the same, we’ll just try to hide it.
Such a corporate commitment to signaling virtue, aimed at a tiny fraction of the entire buying population, is just insane.
Buyers don’t want to be bombarded with politics of any kind! – if you are looking for new t-shirts for your child or a cold six-pack of a crisp and refreshing local lager.
How much more economic damage will it take for companies to realize this?
