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Keeping a retail niche in the bullseye
Gregg Steinhafel, Target Corp. chairman and CEO
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EXECUTIVE SNAPSHOT
Who: Target Chairman and CEO Gregg Steinhafel.
Education: Steinhafel earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Carroll College and an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.
Personal: He and his wife, Denise, live in Orono, Minn., and have two children.
What you may not know: Steinhafel likes to snowboard.
About the author
Kai Ryssdal is the host and senior editor of Marketplace, public radio’s program on business and the economy. Follow Kai on Twitter @kairyssdal.
I can't stand the way people try to "sell" their products or services because they supposedly appeal to a "more educated or intelligent" consumer. GIVE ME A BREAK! You have to be pretty stupid to fall for that one. Target sells pretentious imitations of high end products making it a great store for cheapskate phonies. I'll take Walmart over them any day. P.S. NPR Radio could stop using that "intelligent listeners" line itself. Ruth Celeste Felix
Target does not treat its rank and file employees very well (min wage,no benes to speak of,high % of temp emplyees they shuttle in and out) and that is why you get little to no cust serv when go there, and combine that with a lot of incompetent store managers(that do not understand their business) you have a lot of poorly run, underperforming stores,too many stores,and not the low price leader.The bottom line is they fill a niche,but have weak management at the top that can't execute(lip service is cheap)Will not be a industry leader unless a change is made.Kmart?
I completely agree with both Mr.Steinhafel and Ms. Biggs comments. I agree with Mr. Steinhafel simply because I can relate and understand where he's coming from. I think what he's trying to say in resopnse to Ms. Biggs is that more educated people would perfer to shop in quality instead of just low prices. While Target is a lot more organized to shop and always looking for ways to cater to the customers. Whether it be their cafe or making things easy to find their always thinking of something. While on the other hand Wal-Mart is not as organized or really tries to cater to their customers. I am a young female college student and I shop both now, but I grew up shopping Target and I still perfer it to Wal-Mart.
For some time I have been trying to pinpoint the reason I find Target to be a relaxing treat and Wal-MArt to be a draining Chore. After hereing this interview I understand. It's Target's "editing" process. While I am usually left feeling manipulated by such marketing ploys, I find myself feeling only grateful for this. I am the Target demographic, educated (and working) mother. I don't have the energy or desire to do this editing myself. I am willing to pay a little more than I would at WalMart to have Target edit the selection to the items I am really interested in. THANK YOU.
This mainly is a response to the comment of Ashley Marie Biggs. Her message of an "educated" Wal-Mart shopper (herself included) is greatly undermined by her writing: "offence" vs. offense; "certinally" vs. certainly; "activly" vs. actively; "simular" vs. similar; "elitiest" vs. elitist; "it's" vs. its.
I heard the Interveiw from the Corner Office report aired 20 May 2009, an interview with the CEO/President of Target, Mr. Steinhafel.
For the most part, the interview was fine and upbeat. Let me say that Target is a wonderful store. But I took great offence to his comment about the "guests" of his store being more "affluent," and more "educated." While the former may be true, the latter is certinally not. Mr. Steinhafel makes the assumption that those who shop Wal-Mart as opposed to Target are "less educated." This simply isn't the case.
I have a Master's degree and am about to start my PhD within the next two years. I make a decent salary as a Public Librarian. The one thing I learned, in all my 25 years, is that you always purchase the best product at the best price. I search for the best price online, in stores, and activly hunt sales for EVERYTHING I buy. It's sad to say, but Wal-Mart typically can beat Target's price for simular quality items. One way Mr. Steinafel can help adapt the Target company to the recession is to not to "edit" the stock, but to rid the slightly elitiest view Target has of it's "guest."
With Knid Regards,
Ashley Marie Biggs
Dover, Delaware
