Visits To Target Stores Remains Soft

Store traffic at Target remains down through July, as new data from Placer.ai shows continued softness in overall shopper visits for six of the first seven months of 2025.

Following a 3.5% gain in January, the Minneapolis-based mass merchant has seen overall visits and same-store visits remain in the negative from February through July. Through the spring and summer, overall store visits were down 1.7% in May, 4.1% in June and 3.9% in July. Same-store visits for the same three months, respectively, were down 2.2%, 4.7% and 4.4%.

Although Target has seen online growth, reporting digital comparable sales growth of 4.7% in its most recent quarter and 35% growth in same-day delivery, it was not enough to offset the 5.7% decline in in-store comparable sales.

The retailer’s struggles in 2025 are not new and are a carryover from 2024. In response, Target in May launched the Enterprise Acceleration Office to drive “even greater speed and agility” across the retailer. It also announced the departure of Christina Hennington, Target’s chief strategy and growth officer.

Michael Fiddelke, the company’s chief operating officer, was tasked with overseeing the new project as the retailer works to improve how functions collaborate to advance key priorities, including simplifying cross-company processes, and using technology and data in new ways.

"The Enterprise Acceleration Office represents a strategic commitment to operating more nimbly across the organization, creating conditions for speed, adaptability, innovation and resilience,” Brian Cornell, Target’s chairman and chief executive officer, said when announcing the new initiative. “It goes beyond improving efficiency to build operational muscles that clear the way for our talented team to deliver for our guests while accelerating our performance and growth."

In its report, Placer.ai said Target faces a difficult strategic balancing act moving forward and that augmenting its offering with compelling essentials will be critical.

“As demonstrated by the strong performance of retailers like Five Below and T.J. Maxx, there still exists a healthy market for discretionary treasure hunting,” Placer.ai said. “Ultimately, Target’s ability to reignite growth will depend on its success in rejuvenating its competitive edge in the discretionary market, a task likely to be further complicated by anticipated tariffs.”