Target’s CEO Steps Down As Sales Drop Amid DEI Boycott
After serving at Target for 11 years, CEO Brian Cornell is stepping down from the retailer after it faced low foot traffic and backlash to ending its DEI efforts. Cornell will stay on as executive chairman and will be replaced by Target’s current chief operating officer, Michael Fiddelke, on February 1, 2026, according to a press release.
He took over the company in 2014 and transformed the retailer, overseeing a strategy to remodel stores and strengthen the chain’s online business to compete with Amazon.
Target’s decline
Target has been on the decline for years due largely to its strategic missteps, CNN reports. It also faced competition from Walmart, Amazon, and Costco. Additionally, the retailer also struggled to recover from boycotts and backlash following its rollback of DEI initiatives.
The retailer’s foot traffic has remained low, according to data from analytics platform Placer.ai. Since Q1 2024, the company’s year-over-year foot traffic changes have closely mirrored its revenue shifts, Retail Brew reports, differing by an average of just 1.2 percentage points over the past five quarters.
On Wednesday, Target reported its third straight quarterly sales drop, sending shares down 10% in premarket trading, CNN reports. The retailer’s stock is now among the S&P 500’s worst performers this year.
Target rolling back its DEI efforts
Target joined the growing list of companies rolling back their DEI initiatives in January.
In a memo shared with employees, the company said it will end its three-year DEI goals, concluding its Racial Equity Action and Change (REACH) initiatives in 2025 and ending a program focused on carrying more products from Black- or minority-owned businesses.
As a retailer known for featuring Black-owned brands like The Lip Bar, Black Girl Sunscreen, Tabitha Brown, and Donna’s Recipe, Black consumers felt let down by Target. The decision to end its DEI initiatives triggered a boycott led by Pastor Jamal Bryant in March, which coincided with Lent.
Bryant has continued to urge consumers to boycott, arguing that Target has fulfilled only one of four demands from the Target Forward campaign tied to its $2 billion pledge to Black-owned businesses.
Image credit: Shabaz Usmani
