A Little History and the Brand Promise!

Do you recognize this logo? You should, it beat out Nike, Apple, McDonalds and CBS in Fortune Magazines 2008 "Company Logo Smackdown"

What is behind the logo? The first Target store opened in 1962 in Roseville, MN. Target began as a discount store chain under the Dayton Company. In 1975 Target became the number 1 revenue producer of the Dayton-Hudson Corporation. In 1994 Target Revealed its brand promise "Expect More Pay Less." In 1999 target.com was launched and the bullseye dog made his first appearance in advertisements. In 2000 the Dayton-Hudson Corporation was renamed Target Corporation. Most recently Target is expanding fresh food offering to stores nationwide.

Target's Mission is "To make Target the preferred shopping destination for guests by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation, and an exceptional guest experience by consistently fulfilling the Expect More. Pay Less. brand promise."

So how does the company go about fulfill this brand promise? They focus on design, that's right design. Target designs their stores to be easy and intuitive to shop, placing related departments next to each other and a center aisle to help guests quickly reach what they need. They also reach back to their department store roots to focus on aesthetics in displays to help their guests have a better shopping experience. Target also takes design to a different level with their innovative product lines, they talk about design as something that is helping to fulfill a need or simplifying life. This has been demonstrated with their ClearRX prescription packaging and Itso storage and organization products. Target continuously works on design and innovation to give their guests the brand promise of Expect More. Pay Less.

External Environment

I read an article, from the New York Times on January 13, 2011, that talks about the global segment of Target and competition in the retail industry. The article entitled "Target Moves Into Canada By Buying Store Chain," starts out by stating that this is the first global move for Target. To move into Canada, Target acquired a department store chain. The acquisition is helping Target to gain prime retail space that was otherwise unavailable.

I think that this creates a huge competitive disadvantage for Walmart in Canada, as they were ruling the market there. Target increases its competitiveness with this deal by making itself an international company. The biggest advantage to Target, with this acquisition, is the market in Canada did not suffer as much as the U.S. market has in the past few years, making the opportunity for sales greater. The market in Canada for retailers such as Target is also far less competitive than the same market in the U.S.

Citations
Austen, Ian. "Target Moves Into Canada By Buying Store Chain" New York Times on the Web. 13 Jan. 2011. Global Business. 17 Feb. 2011. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/business/global/14target.html.

Fortune 500 Company

I have chosen Target as the company I will focus on this semester. I am very interested in learning more about Target and think that it will make a great topic of study.