Target CEO steps down as company faces weak sales and customer boycott | Business

The CEO of Goal is stepping down, because the embattled retail big seeks to show round its fortunes amid an ongoing buyer boycott over its scaling again of variety, fairness and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.Brian Cornell shall be changed subsequent yr by , Goal’s chief working officer, the corporate mentioned on Wednesday.Cornell helped re-energize the corporate when he grew to become CEO in 2014, however has struggled to show round weak gross sales in a extra aggressive retail panorama for the reason that Covid pandemic.Gross sales at Goal, which has nearly 2,000 shops throughout the US, fell greater than anticipated within the first quarter of 2025, and the retailer warned earlier this yr that gross sales will proceed to slide by the remainder of the yr. Goal mentioned individuals had been scaling again spending over worries in regards to the influence of tariffs and the state of the economic system. The corporate additionally mentioned buyer boycotts affected gross sales.The corporate scaled again many DEI initiatives in January after they got here underneath assault by conservative activists and the White Home.The retreat created a backlash, and a ballot in February discovered that People had modified their purchasing habits and deserted some shops in response to firms shifting their insurance policies to align with the Trump administration.The Guardian reported in July that many Black People had been boycotting shops together with Goal and Amazon, and earlier this yr greater than 250,000 individuals signed a pledge to boycott Goal after the Rev Jamal Bryant, pastor of New Beginning Baptist church in Georgia, referred to as for a 40-day “Goal Quick” that began originally of the Lenten season.The corporate had beforehand come underneath hearth in 2024 after it lowered its assortment of LGBTQ+-themed merchandise for Pleasure month, in response to rightwing criticism.Goal reported a 21% drop in internet revenue in second quarter of this yr. Gross sales had been down barely and the corporate reported a 1.9% dip in comparable gross sales – these from established bodily shops and on-line channels. The corporate has seen flat or declining comparable gross sales in eight out of the previous 10 quarters together with the most recent interval.