Target has another big problem amid alarming customer behavior | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

Target (TGT) , which has almost 2,000 stores nationwide, is struggling to shake a concerning shift in customer behavior that has significantly impacted its sales for several financial quarters.

In Target’s first-quarter earnings report for 2025, it revealed that its comparable store sales dipped by 3.8% year-over-year. Also, according to recent data from Placer.ai, the number of customers visiting Target stores per location shrank by 4.8% year-over-year during the quarter.

The pullback from consumers comes at a time when many are battling inflation and are concerned that tariffs will further increase prices for everyday goods. Also, Target recently faced backlash for scaling back its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, which sparked several consumer boycotts.

During an earnings call in May, Target CEO Brian Cornell said the company is operating in an “exceptionally challenging environment,” with several factors negatively impacting business.

“For several years now, we’ve seen pressure in our discretionary businesses, as spending adjusted down from elevated levels during the pandemic and then moved further away in the face of historically high inflation in needs-based categories,” said Cornell.

“On top of those ongoing challenges, we faced several additional headwinds this quarter, including five consecutive months of declining consumer confidence, uncertainty regarding the impact of potential tariffs, and the reaction to the updates we shared on Belonging in January.”

Target policy changes have sparked consumer backlash.

Image source&colon; Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Target faces another major threat amid declining sales

Just last month, Target faced a major boycott from consumers, organized by The People’s Union USA, for its DEI cuts. Now, another big group is threatening to make a similar move.

On June 26, the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) met with Target CEO Brian Cornell to discuss the retailer’s decision to roll back its DEI policies in January.

The cuts resulted in Target discontinuing its three-year DEI goals and Racial Equity Action and Change initiatives, which launched in 2020 and included advancing the careers of Black employees, instituting anti-racism training for staff members, promoting Black-owned businesses, and sourcing products from Black suppliers.

Through these initiatives, Target also pledged to donate $1 million to the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation over five years. Since 2020, the retailer has donated at least $1.4 million to the foundation.

The CBC said in a recent press release that the conversation with Cornell was “candid and direct.” However, it warned him that “efforts to restore consumer and public trust without genuine action and accountability” would risk causing “lasting damage” to Target’s “brand and credibility.”

During the meeting, the group demanded that Target recommit to DEI in a public forum and reinstate DEI policies that were “eliminated or rolled back.”

The CBC also demanded an update on the status of financial investments and other publicly pledged policies, as well as details of Target’s workforce diversity, business supplier diversity, and community investment.

However, the CBC is supporting a boycott of Target after the conversation with the company’s leadership yielded disappointing results.

“Like many of the coalition leaders and partner organizations that have chosen to boycott their stores across the country, we found that the explanations offered by the leadership of the Target Corporation fell woefully short of what our communities deserve and of the values of inclusion that Target once touted,” said the CBC in the press release.

The CBC also highlighted that Black consumers have a significant impact on Target’s “bottom line.”

“Black consumers contribute overwhelmingly to our economy and to the Target Corporation’s bottom line,” said the CBC. “Our communities deserve to shop at businesses that publicly share our values without sacrificing our dignity. It is no longer acceptable to deliver promises to our communities in private without also demonstrating those values publicly.”

Target CEO has recently been doing damage control

The CBC’s boycott threat comes after Cornell has been ramping up his efforts to address the backlash over Target’s DEI cuts.

In April, Cornell met with the Rev. Al Sharpton to advert another potential Target boycott over DEI cuts.

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The following month, Cornell also reportedly sent an email to Target employees acknowledging that it had been “a tough few months,” admitting that the company’s lack of communication amid recent controversy had led to “uncertainty.”

He also emphasized that Target’s values of “inclusivity, connection, drive” are “not up for debate” and said that the company is “committed” to sharing how its values create an impact.

“The world around us is noisier and more complicated, but that doesn’t change who we are,” said Cornell.