Image source: Instagram @TeamTarget
Target Corporation (NYSE: Chart TGT - $165.63 5.36 (3.344%) ) announced Wednesday it will add products from more than 500 Black-owned brands, spend more with Black-owned businesses such as marketing and construction companies and launch a support and mentoring program for Black-owned companies.
The Minneapolis-based big-box retail chain did not specify its current overall spending with Black-owned businesses but said it plans to increase that figure and spend more than $2 billion by 2025.
In a press release, Target chief growth officer Christina Hennington said, “We have a rich history of working with diverse businesses, but there’s more we can do to spark change across the retail industry, support the Black community and ensure Black guests feel welcomed and represented when they shop at Target.”
Those changes include adding a broad spectrum of products from more than 500 Black-owned businesses and increasing spending at more Black-owned companies including marketing agencies, construction companies and facilities maintenance companies.
The chain also says it will introduce new resources, such as a dedicated team to help Black-owned businesses scale their companies to work with mass chains, an effort that builds off Target’s existing Forward Founders program that helps entrepreneurs.
“The bold actions we’re announcing today reflect Target’s ongoing commitment to advance racial equity for the Black community," Hennington said. "They also represent significant economic opportunity for hundreds of new Black-owned companies, who we look forward to doing business with for years to come.”
Wednesday’s announcement comes a few months after Target made a pledge to increase the number of Black employees by 20% over the next three years. The chain and its foundation also committed to giving $10 million to non-profit groups focused on addressing barriers for Black communities.
Over the past year, major companies such as Nike Inc (NYSE: Chart NKE - $122.64 2.54 (2.115%) ), Walmart Inc (NYSE: Chart WMT - $147.45 1.78 (1.222%) ) and Ulta Beauty Inc (Nasdaq: Chart ULTA - $545.67 9.30 (1.734%) ) have announced their own pledges, such as giving more shelf space to Black-owned products, evaluating how hires and promotions are conducted and featuring more Black people in their ads.
Over 20 retailers, including Sephora, Macy’s and The Gap, have committed to the Fifteen Percent Pledge, which strives to make the number of Black-owned products on store shelves proportional to the country’s Black population.
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Source: Equities News
