Walk into a Target today and it looks the same as it did three years ago. The red carts are there. The Starbucks smells the same. But the data tells a story that the shiny floors don't. Target struggles to retain customers post-controversies in a way we haven't seen since the massive 2013 data breach, and honestly, this time it feels way more personal for the shoppers who walked away.
Retail is fickle. One day you’re the "Tar-jay" darling of the suburban landscape, and the next, you’re a political football.
The Tipping Point of 2023
It started with a Pride collection. Now, Target has done Pride for years. No biggie, right? Except in 2023, things shifted. The backlash wasn't just some angry tweets; it was physical. People were knocking over displays in stores. Employees felt unsafe. Target reacted by pulling some merchandise and moving displays to the back in certain Southern locations.
Then the other side got mad.
Progressive shoppers felt betrayed. They saw a brand that claimed to be an ally folding the moment things got "spicy." Suddenly, Target was caught in a pincer movement. Conservatives were boycotting because they felt the imagery was too much, and liberals were boycotting because they felt the company lacked a backbone. You can't please everyone, but Target managed to upset almost everyone all at once.
Brian Cornell, Target’s CEO, had to face the music during earnings calls. The numbers weren't pretty. For the first time in six years, Target reported a drop in comparable sales. We’re talking about a 5.4% dip in the second quarter of 2023 alone. That’s billions of dollars in "oops."
Why This Isn't Just About Politics
If you think this is only about rainbows and swimsuits, you’re missing the forest for the trees. The controversy was the spark, but the fuel was already in the room. Inflation.
While Target was duking it out in the culture wars, Walmart was sharpening its knives. Walmart isn't cool. It never has been. But when eggs cost five bucks and gas is pushing four, "cool" takes a backseat to "cheap." Target has always occupied that weird middle ground between a discounter and a department store. When the controversy hit, it gave people a reason to try Walmart or Aldi.
And they liked the prices.
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Retaining a customer is ten times harder than getting a new one. Once a suburban mom realizes she can save $40 a week by switching her grocery run to a competitor, the "controversy" that started the shift becomes an afterthought. The habit is broken. Target struggles to retain customers post-controversies because they didn't just lose their brand affinity; they lost the routine of the American shopper.
The "Expect More, Pay Less" Dilemma
The slogan is iconic. But lately, shoppers feel like they’re paying more and getting... well, less. Target’s push into "premium" private labels like Good & Gather or All in Motion was a stroke of genius for a while. It drove margins up. But during the 2023-2024 fallout, these brands didn't have the same "must-have" pull.
Neil Saunders from GlobalData Retail pointed out something pretty sharp: Target relies heavily on discretionary spending. We’re talking home decor, throw pillows, and trendy apparel. When people are mad at a brand, they don't stop buying toilet paper, but they absolutely stop buying $25 candles.
- Foot traffic plummeted in regions where the backlash was loudest.
- The digital channel, usually Target’s golden child, saw a softening.
- Competitors like Amazon and Shein ate into the "cheap chic" apparel market.
It’s a tough spot. If you’re Target, how do you win them back? You can’t just apologize your way out of a cultural divide. You have to be better at the basics.
The Ghost of 2013
Remember the credit card breach? 40 million credit card numbers stolen. That was a technical controversy. People were scared, but they weren't insulted. Target fixed the tech, offered free credit monitoring, and people came back because the value proposition hadn't changed.
The current struggle is different. This is about identity. When a brand becomes a symbol of a "side," the other side treats shopping there like a betrayal of their values. That’s a much harder bridge to rebuild than just updating some firewall software.
Real-World Impact: By the Numbers
Let's look at the actual fallout. In the wake of the 2023 incidents, Target's stock price took a massive haircut, losing about $15 billion in market cap in just a few weeks. That’s a lot of Bullseye dogs.
While they've recovered some ground in 2024 and 2025 by leaning heavily into price cuts—slashing prices on over 5,000 frequent-purchase items—the "vibe" is still off. You can see it in the foot traffic data from firms like Placer.ai. While Walmart saw steady climbs, Target’s recovery has been jagged. It’s inconsistent.
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People are "dating" other retailers. Target is the ex-boyfriend who's trying to get back in your good graces by offering you a discount on a new sweater. Sometimes it works. Often, you’ve already moved on to someone more reliable.
The Shrinkage Factor
To make matters worse, Target had to close nine stores in late 2023, citing theft and "organized retail crime." While they blamed safety, many analysts whispered that these stores were underperforming anyway. Using "safety" as a shield didn't help their PR image. It made the stores sound chaotic.
If you're already feeling weird about a brand's politics, hearing that their stores are "unsafe" or "high-theft" is the final nail in the coffin. You just go to Costco instead. It’s easier.
How Target Is Trying to Pivot (and Why It’s Hard)
They are trying. Really.
Target Circle 360 was launched to compete with Amazon Prime and Walmart+. They're leaning into same-day delivery. They’re trying to move the conversation back to "value."
But the "cool" factor is lagging. For years, Target was the place where you’d go for one thing and leave with fifteen items you didn't need. That "Target Run" magic is fueled by dopamine. Controversy is a dopamine killer. When you walk into a store and feel a sense of tension—or even just a lack of excitement—the impulse buying stops.
The "Neutrality" Trap
In 2024, Target announced they would only offer Pride merchandise in "select stores" based on historical sales. They tried to go neutral.
The result?
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Silence. And not the good kind. The middle ground is a lonely place in modern retail. By trying to be "neutral," they risked becoming boring. And for a brand that lives and dies by being "on-trend," boring is a death sentence.
Actionable Insights for the Future of the Bullseye
So, what does Target actually do now? They can't go back in time. They have to deal with the reality that Target struggles to retain customers post-controversies in a polarized world.
Focus on the "And" not the "Or"
Target has to be cheap and cool again. They’ve leaned too hard into the "chic" and let the "cheap" part slip away to Walmart. The recent price cuts on milk, bread, and diapers are a start, but they need to sustain that for years, not months, to win back the "switchers."
Own the Curation
What makes Target great isn't the aisles; it's the stuff in them. They need more exclusive partnerships like the ones they had with Missoni or Hunter. Give people a reason to come in that has nothing to do with social issues and everything to do with "I can't get this anywhere else."
Double Down on the In-Store Experience
The biggest advantage Target has over Amazon is the physical store. It needs to be a "third place." Clean up the "shrink" issues, keep the shelves stocked (which has been a weirdly consistent problem lately), and make the Starbucks line move faster.
Stop Playing Defense
Target's biggest mistake was looking scared. Brands that apologize to everyone end up standing for nothing. Whether people agree with their stances or not, shoppers respect consistency. Target needs to pick a lane—even if that lane is just "we sell great stuff at good prices"—and stay in it without flinching every time a TikTok goes viral.
The Reality Check
The road back to 2019 levels of brand love is long. Target is a massive machine, and machines this big turn slowly. They are currently in a "rebuilding" phase, whether they use that word or not. Retaining the 20% of customers who felt alienated by various controversies will take more than a coupon. It will take a total re-centering on the customer's wallet rather than the customer's social feed.
The "Target Run" isn't dead. It's just on life support in certain parts of the country. To fix it, the brand has to remember that at the end of the day, they are a store, not a town square. Sell the soap. Sell the shirts. Leave the rest at the door.