(USNewsMag.com) – As Target continues to lose market value, Gerald Storch, a former Target vice chairman, is speaking out about Target’s biggest mistake with its Pride collection.
According to Storch, most retailers carry pride merchandise, displaying items such as plates with rainbows, and most people don’t care. However, he said he believes one item in the Target Pride collection is what made the difference for the retail giant.
The tuck-friendly swimsuit, according to Storch, is what “made the difference versus the competitors.”
Viral videos on social media feature the swimsuit, as well as other items such as rainbow-colored onesies, T-shirts with sayings such as “Pride Adult Drag Queen ‘Katya’” all near the children’s section of Target stores. Most of the Pride collection has items aimed at children. The collection also has a bag designed by Abprallen who claims to be a worshiper of Satan.
The boycott forced a meeting with Target executives where the Pride collection was moved from the front of some stores to the back.
Since May the company has lost $12 billion in market value. Storch explained that the stock price decline began May 18, and that same day Walmart reported a 7 percent gain. However, Storch noted that year-to-date Target stock was already performing poorly. While he believes the boycott is not helping, he believes the issue for the loss in market value is a combination of the boycott and a poor economy. He stated that the environment and inflation are causing the consumers to feel “very stressed, very stressed.”
The day before the boycott began, Target’s market value was $74 billion. By May 31, the company had lost stock value for 9 consecutive days, marking the company’s longest losing streak in 23 years. On June 1, JPMorgan downgraded the company’s stock from neutral to overweight, stating many concerns were arising.
The Target boycott comes on the heels of a Bud Light boycott after the company announced a partnership with transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
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