❗Help close the gap: We still need to raise $40,000 by the end of March. Donate now

Target sees sales growth but weak spots online

Annie Baxter Nov 18, 2015
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Target sees sales growth but weak spots online

Annie Baxter Nov 18, 2015
HTML EMBED:
COPY

Target said traffic and sales at its stores climbed in the third quarter.

But like other retailers, it did take a hit from unusually warm weather, particularly in its online sales

The Minnesota-based discount retailer has been trying to recapture its “cheap chic” image with a new focus on “signature” categories, like fashion, kids, baby and wellness.

Sales at existing stores of those signature items grew two and a half times faster than the company’s average in the third quarter.

Chief Financial Officer Cathy Smith said the use of mannequins in stores proved helpful.

“When we display an outfit on a mannequin and we do a full display of all the accessories, we’re selling through the product so fast,” she said.

But Smith said apparel and accessories were weak spots online in the third quarter.

“When it’s 75 and 80 degrees in October and early November, people aren’t buying winter coats,” said Edward Jones analyst Brian Yarbrough.

Yarbrough said that issue has also proved vexing to other retailers recently. 

 

There’s a lot happening in the world.  Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. 

You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible. 

Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.