Does Target Belong?

A couple months ago, Target announced that they were opening their first stores in Canada. By the end of their international expansion into Canada, Canada should have around 125 to 135 Target stores. As these stores are opening across Canada, there has been much debate whether or not this was a good move. In the States, consumers view Target as a trendy, reasonable store. This is similar in Canada, however, there are also some fears. From Canadian consumers perspective, they are worried that large stores like Target will take away from smaller family run Canadian businesses. In order for Target to be successful, they need to market themselves in a way that deals with this threat. Target states in its corporate responsibility page that they like supporting local communities by working with local suppliers. However, not many consumers know of this fact. If they market this so that consumers are aware of what Target is trying to achieve, consumers will be less resilient to the company. For example, Target is currently working with Roots to create a cheaper special edition clothing line. This will allow Target to capture the target market of consumers who don’t want to spend as much on clothing, while still staying loyal to Canadian brands. In order for Target to be successful in Canada, they must be cognizant that Canada is a slightly different market than the United States. There are a lot less “giant stores” and many citizens like it that way. Target must modify its marketing strategy such that one of they’re biggest focus should be to let consumers know they are trying to work with local communities. By marketing themselves as more personable, Target will be able to shake their old reputation of just being another large corporation and position them in more favourable light.