If you think Target is wildly unhappy about the massive loss it’s taking to its market cap, rest assured that it’s not sweating…at least not yet.
As RedState’s Nick Arama reported, the retail chain’s market capitalization tanked by billions and it hasn’t leveled off yet:
A week ago Wednesday before the controversy erupted, Target’s stock closed at $160.96 a share, giving the big-box chain a market capitalization of $74.3 billion.
As of early trading on Thursday, however, shares of the company were trading off 1% at $141.76 — capping a weeklong tumble that has shrunk the “cheap chic” discount retailer’s value to $65.3 billion.
That amounts to a 12% drop that has shaved a whopping $9 billion off the company’s market capitalization.
It’s not good news for Target but not the worst news either. Remember that Target’s ESG score will keep in the good graces of woke investing firms. Target CEO Brian Cornell said that his decisions, which include marketing LGBT merchandise to children, are sound and are “adding value” to Target’s bottom line.
Target is woke but, as of right now, it hasn’t suffered enough damage to consider itself as having gone broke. It’s not feeling the same pain Bud Light is feeling, at least not yet, and it’s banking on its customer base to keep it afloat.
According to Insider, Target’s largest demographic is the millennial mom:
Numerator found that Target’s typical shopper is a white suburban mother between 35 and 44 years old. She typically has some college or a 4-year degree, with a household income of $80,000.
The typical customer visits Target every other Saturday or so — about 23 trips per year — and picks up seven products for a total cost of about $50 per trip, Numerator found.
Exit polling from NBC during the midterms found that millennial women broke big for Democrats, continuing a long trend of younger women tending to lean left. This is the demographic that Target believes will save them and, at this time, they have no reason to think otherwise. Even if they did anger a slice of their demographic, they’re counting on their “cheap chic” style to bring them back over time.
“I mean, what are they going to do? Shop at Walmart?” is likely what they’re telling themselves.
While I haven’t heard any of the conversations held between Target’s brass about this strategy, I can pretty much assume that they’re going to appeal to the young leftist mothers to continue keeping them afloat based on what the media is reporting about what Target is going through.
Take, for instance, this story from CBS News about the backlash Target is experiencing. Note the buzzwords being used and the names being thrown around:
During every Pride Month in June for the past decade, Target has sold merchandise for LGBTQ customers, employees and allies. But this year, Target faced an anti-LGBTQ campaign that went viral on social media.
Fueled by far-right personalities and on social media platforms, the anti-trans campaign spread misleading information about the company’s Pride Month products and its business practices.
Hurting brands’ sales and reputations was the stated goal of the campaign: “The goal is to make ‘pride’ toxic for brands,” said right-wing commentator Matt Walsh on Twitter. “If they decide to shove this garbage in our face, they should know that they’ll pay a price. It won’t be worth whatever they think they’ll gain.”
The campaign became hostile, with threats levied against Target employees and instances of damaged products and displays in stores.
That effectively held Target hostage: The company was forced to make an impossible choice to either safeguard its employees and stores or continue to support customers who wanted to buy the products it was selling.
“Far-right” domestic terrorists led by “Matt Walsh” are holding Target employees “hostage!” Oh my!
I’ve seen less drama on an episode of Real Housewives.
I’ve seen random videos here and there of those hostile “conservatives” tearing down displays and berating employees. While I’m not denying that some people could get angry enough to do that, I’m also not entirely convinced it’s not actors putting on a show so the media can point to the video and generate sympathy for Target and anger toward those “far-right” bigots.
It’s entirely possible that they could succeed. They’re clearly lying about recalling things like the designs made by an open Satanist marketed to children for the safety of their employees. They didn’t do it for their employees, they did it because it was actually threatening their bottom line, but if Target and the media sell it as withdrawing certain LGBT designs without even mentioning the Satanist’s involvement, people won’t have looked far enough to believe it.
Most people aren’t fully aware of what Target is doing.
However, it’s also possible that Target crossed the line with its marketing of transgenderism to kids. Fueled by the Mulvaney backlash to Bud Light, the momentum for boycotting businesses that are obedient to the trans mafia is so great that its inertia is carrying over to other businesses. While most of Target’s demographic has no problem at all with LGBT concepts, trying to inject it into their children’s lives might be a line they didn’t want to be crossed.
Moreover, it’s probably not going to help them now that news has gotten out that Target partnered with an organization bent on changing the gender of children in schools behind the parent’s backs. Even if their Demographic were loyal shoppers, Target couldn’t expect that their loyalty to the store would exceed that of their loyalty to their own children.
Regardless, Target is still loving the fact that they’re having this fight right now. They see it as clout with their demo, padding to their ESG score, and a storm they can weather. However, the more news about just how sinister the store is behind its stylish throw pillows next to the scented candles, the worse their boycott will likely become.
Keep spreading the word.
