Case Study Of Target Corporation

Target Corporation
Target Corporation operates Target general merchandise stores with an assortment of general merchandise and food items, as well as SuperTarget stores with a line of food and general merchandise items. Target.com offers an assortment of general merchandise, including many items found in the Company's stores and a complementary assortment, such as extended sizes and colors, sold only online. The Company operates in two segments: Retail and Credit Card. The Retail Segment includes all of its merchandising operations, including its general merchandise and food discount stores in the United States and its integrated online business ("News Bites - USA. News Bites," 2017). Also, very importantly, the corporation is the NYSE's 2nd largest

Broadline retailer by market cap to date.
Some of Target Corporation’s critical success factors include the company’s brand name and the company’s marketing campaigns.

Target is a well-recognized and established brand name across the United States that is widely respected by customers. It's good relationship with its customers has helped to create a high degree of brand loyalty. According to Target’s latest annual 10k report, a substantial amount of its sales came from its nationally branded merchandise. The company estimated that up to a third of sales in the 2016 financial year was attributable to its owned and exclusive brands (Target, 2017). These brands are an important aspect of Target’s strategy as they attempt to differentiate themselves from other retailers.
Target’s marketing strategy has been one of its critical success factors. The company’s marketing campaign has seen it capture various profitable segments of the retail market such as household items and fashion. It has managed to present itself as a fashionable retail store to the younger customer segment. It has been able to present itself as a middle class brand and thus has been able to attract shoppers from other traditional discount

stores.
Despite these critical factors, there are potential avenues which Target can utilize to maintain its competitive edge in the market. For example, the company can try out new sales avenues that have been shown to significantly contribute to a company’s bottom-line. Some of these avenues include same day online delivery systems. In addition, Target could also venture into smaller neighborhood stores to increase its customer base. Reason being, the country has gradually seen a decline in middle-class incomes (Binkley & Chen, 2016). The declining incomes mean more Americans could potentially turn to discount stores. Essentially, this could potentially be another avenue for Target to increase its customer base if it carries out good marketing campaigns.