Target will lay off around 1,000 employees
Target will lay off 1,000 corporate employees and close 800 open roles — affecting roughly 8% of its global corporate workforce — the company said Thursday.
The layoffs and changes “set the course for our company to be stronger, faster and better positioned” for the future, incoming Target CEO Michael Fiddelke said in an email to employees.
Fiddelke will take over from veteran CEO Brian Cornell next year, the company announced in August.
The layoffs, which come ahead of the critical holiday shopping season, are the latest sign of struggles at the Minneapolis-based company. It has been reeling from slumping sales and fierce blowback to its retreat on DEI programs.
Its decision to end some of those initiatives angered supporters of diversity and inclusion policies, who felt blindsided. Target had staked out a reputation as a strong corporate supporter of DEI.
Target said its move weighed on sales, which have fallen for three straight quarters.
Economic conditions and competition from Walmart, Amazon and Costco have also taken a toll on Target.
Customers have shifted their buying patterns, purchasing less of the company’s home goods and clothing.
The company’s stock has dropped 30% in 2025, putting it among the worst-performing companies in the S&P 500 this year.
A Target spokesperson said the company did not lay off employees to cut costs. Instead, it was a step to rewire its organization to make decisions more swiftly.
