Target 's Business Level Strategy

After the recession, Target’s value proposition shifted to simply offer affordable options in a wide array of product areas. However, now with better economic conditions and without the ability to offer lower prices than its affordable retail competitors, such as Walmart, and in order to stay relevant and refresh the company, Target needs to reposition itself as the high-quality concept and style-oriented retail store it was once known for.

Research shows that 96% of people recognize the Target bulls-eye. This surpasses brand recognition for both Apple and Nike Swoosh. (Target.com) Target has centered their marketing strategy on the brand promise, “Expect More, Pay Less”. Its brand is known as the stylish alternative to discount shopping. John Remington, the vice president of marketing stated, “We wanted to be much more than just another discount store, we wanted to be the place that our guests lovingly refer to as “Tar-zhay”. Remington credits Target’s design from flagging to fabulous to both marketing and merchandising. Target knew that it had to distinguish itself to survive. This has been accomplished through their product offerings and marketing strategies.

Target Corporation uses energy conserving Windows, low wattage bulb fixtures, motion sensors and refrigerator that earns energy stars as well as saves energy cost through these initiatives (Target Sustainability, 2015). Target Corporation energy efficient sustainable building is a commitment to support community and environment using solar energy. Solar energy generation eases the burden of the local power supply company. The more Target Corporation leads with an environmentally sustainable initiative, the Target Corporation brand name becomes popular and more people aware of the brand within the community (CSR, 2014). Target Corporation focus on the growth also based on the customer convenience by building urban stores near mass transit saving an enormous amount of transportation cost and lowering carbon footprint. These urban stores bring more traffic and more sales outperforming the competitors in the same area.

The Target Corporation prides itself on their department store roots with a constant obligation to great prices and stylish originality. The main focus of every Target store is the customer, whom the corporation refers to as a "guest", making them feel more personal. Each guest can expect to

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) is the leading large-format general merchandise and discount retailer in the U.S., challenging Wal-Mart in electronics, toys and apparel while also seeking to differentiate with higher-end fashions and products for an upscale audience. As of the close of their latest fiscal year (FY2011), Target operated approximately 1,760 stores encompassing 233,000 square feet in 49 states and the District of Columbia. The company is divided into the retail and credit card divisions and moves the majority of its products through a highly integrated network of 37 different distribution centers, which include four food distribution centers. Target is one of the most well-entrenched large format retailers in the U.S., has the ability to manage their pricing strategies at a level of accuracy and precision that is comparable to Wal-Mart (Henderson, 2001). Unlike Wal-Mart, Target concentrates on a value-based message that concentrates on quality and price differentiation to sustain their gross margins while Wal-Mart concentrates on supply chain efficiency and a continual reduction of supplier and transaction costs (Krishnamurthi, 2001).

One of the issues Target could face if it continues to only focus on private label store brands and do not promote national brands is losing a percentage of its customers. Although Target’s innovative amount of store brands on its aisles has proven successfully for the retailer and consumers have shown a positive reception to the products, there are still a number of customers who are accustomed to

CEOs are required to have the most experience and knowledge regarding their field of business. They maintain company loyalty and product reputation. Brian Cornell is board chairman and CEO of Target. He manages Target’s global business, including nearly 1,800 U.S. stores and Target.com, more than 341,000 team members and millions of guests. Cornell leads the retailer’s executive leadership team in accelerating Target’s performance, advancing its digital evolution and delivering on its “Expect More. Pay Less.” promise to guests. Cornell joined Target in August 2014 after more than 30 years in escalating leadership positions at leading retail and global consumer product companies, including three CEO roles and more than two decades doing business

Target Corporation offers its customers a vast variety of products, well also providing a service. The corporation owns or has exclusive rights to many different brands ranging from groceries to clothing. For example, some brands that can only be found at Target are Archer Farms which provides food merchandise, Merona which supplies clothing and Room Essentials which provides home goods (Target, 2015, para.2). The shopping experience that Target provides can be defined as a service. The stores shopping experience is a service, since it cannot be patented, interaction with the customer occurs, it is heterogeneous, along with perishable and time dependent and contains the package of features (Chase & Jacobs, 2013, p.9). Target is a popular consumer destination because it provides both a service and goods making it ideal for one

Target demographic are all shoppers. Before the recession Target main customer focus was the “ minivan mom” or boomer mom in suburban areas (Haizack 2015). This type of consumer being a stay at home mom that takes care of home. This type of shopper was said to want stylish chic design and this plan worked well until hard time hit the company due to the recession. During this period target changed their brand to low prices but this strategy did not work for the company (Haizack 2015). Target fell into the trap of selling cheap products instead of the stylish ones that the customers were accustomed. Target Wants to be the number one department store in the world and to do this they have to appeal to all and future shoppers. The major group that Target is looking to market to is Hispanic guest. A poll was given and 54% of Hispanic millennial said Target was their favorite store to buy items from (Haizack 2015). This poll shows that Target plans to expand to this market and tap into the potential

Ashley Murrell Tara Estes English 101 December 2, 2016 The Battle of Walmart, Kmart and Target In today’s shopping world, there are so many places people can go. There are stores that have everything you need in one place. Target stores are the newest to come up, competing with Walmart and Kmart, which have been around for decades. All of these stores have the same idea, but are, also, very much different. From the neighborhoods they are placed in, to their catch phrases, and prices. They all have services that are similar, and customer shopping experience. Each offers almost the same departments, but different layouts, sizes of the area, and brand names. Target the newest star to join the market; it has shown up in urban neighborhoods with spot light prices. Using the catch phrase of “Expect More, Pay Less,” they drew in a younger crowd. Target customers pay a little more than what those that shop at Walmart pay, but save more than Kmart customers. Walmart that came in after Kmart is known for their smiley roll back prices, and are the home of the “Save Money, Live Better,” catch phrase. They are found in most metropolitan cities, and along travel routes; thus making them easily accusable to travelers. Walmart comes in as the cheapest of these three marketplaces. Kmart and their “Blue Light Specials” are getting harder to find due to their closings nationwide. They once targeted the same areas as Walmart, and now they are few and far between. Kmart is also dead last when he

Using its clout, as the second largest discount chain, Target wrote an imperative appeal to their wholesalers regarding the need for new product creation, that would set it apart from rivals in an effort to protect the chain from this price comparison movement, and where these unique goods aren’t possible, Target is urging the vendors to assist them in being able to match their competitor’s prices (Kinicki & Williams, 2012). The long-established collaborative nature of the relationship between Target and their vendors,

Target sells its products from the high end of the market to the low end depending on the type of product in question. In regards to Electronics items where the caption rate is small, they price their items at the high end to ensure they meet their margins. However, in regards to Target’s name brand items, they price those at the low end, keeping the company as a discounted retailer. Target also sells designer items that range from mid to high range of the market. In 2013 Targets CEO Gregg Steinhafel adopted the philosophy “a penny saved is a penny earned”. He further mentioned that they company would be a penny higher in price than their competitors Wal-Mart (Davis, M 2013). Steinhafel stated that “We want to be a penny

This correspondences procedure focused on an up-market cachet with quality stock at moderate costs. They bring new patterns to racks quicker than other markdown retailers and incorporated "fast fashion" to bring about more regular customer visits. Publicizing efforts, for example, "Expect More, Pay Less" work to impart their intended interest group of more youthful, more wealthy, and instructed advertise. They have engaged their business sectors "classification require, mark mindfulness, mark disposition, and brand buy aim" with its IMC systems. Walmart has passed on a brand as a rebate superstore, which purchasers see as modest and low quality. Target upholds a solid trust in its purchasers of value and top of the line items. Through their coordinated showcasing correspondences procedures the brand has turned out to be seen as top of the line reasonableness. This separation is the manner by which target has wedged itself a specialty in the markdown retail

The most important actor in a company’s microenvironment is its customers and they have definitely affected the performance of Target’s performance over the past few years (Kotler and Armstrong, p.69). Target did not resonate with its customers like Wal-Mart did, according to Kotler and Armstrong; their well-cultivated “upscale discount” image was turning away customers who believed that its fashionable products and trendy advertisement meant steeper prices. Because of this, the company had experienced three straight quarters of flat-same store sales growth and a small reduction in the amount of shoppers they were receiving.

Target Corporation has recognized itself as one of the top retailers in the United States market on the basis of excellent service quality, customer experiences, operational excellence, strong financial position, and a wide array of product offerings. Through its high degree of service orientation at physical outlets and adoption of fair business practices, Target Corporation has become the most distinctive retailer in the eyes of its potential customers. Being one of the top-notch retailers in the United States, Target Corporation has to carefully strategize on its business operations and marketing tactics so as to keep itself in the row of competitive brands of the industry.