Dive Brief:
- Starting Thursday, Target plans to add more than 10,000 items into its stores and website through August for the summer. The retailer plans to offer new swimwear, outdoor entertainment, snacks, beauty, home and other products, with thousands of the items priced below $20.
- Coinciding with the launch, the mass merchant will host a “Hello Summer” sale starting Sunday and running through May 26. After that, the retailer will have “Hello Summer Saturdays” events every Saturday in June, which will feature giveaways and offer limited-time discounts to Target Circle members on products like apparel, swimwear, suncare and outdoor toys, according to a press release.
- Target is also decorating its stores to evoke a “nostalgic, coastal-inspired experience.” The stores will feature “The Boardwalk Shop,” a food and beverage station; “Build Your Beach Bag” stations where customers can find various travel-sized products; and “The Sun Shop,” where shoppers can find suncare products.
Dive Insight:
Ahead of the summer months, Target is refreshing its merchandise and emphasizing its low prices.
Around the same time last year, the retailer reduced prices on roughly 5,000 items before Memorial Day. And before last year’s holiday season, the retailer made additional price cuts on more than 2,000 products, including health, beauty, snacks, beverage and grocery items.
The latest offering features thousands of goods under $20, with some starting at $1, and comes as consumers face economic pressures. The National Retail Federation last month predicted a “slower trajectory for consumer spending” this year as a trade war looms.
Target, like many retailers, is also preparing for any potential tariff impacts on its business. In its Q4 earnings report, the company said its net sales dipped 3% from the previous year to $30.9 billion. Analysts at the time pointed out how Target remains vulnerable to tariff impacts in the coming months. Chris Bottiglieri, equity research analyst at BNP Paribas Exane, said the retailer faces “significant risk from tariffs and cyclical downside if the consumer slows further on federal cuts or rising inflation on the back of tariffs.”
The rollout of Target’s new summer assortment comes as the retailer also works to improve its merchandise more broadly. As part of a plan rolled out in March, Target will revamp merchandising in key categories and invest between $4 billion and $5 billion into its stores, supply chains and technological infrastructure.
