Target reported that its sales fell during the first quarter of 2025.
Target is the latest retailer to reckon with the potential damages done to its business by President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, and to warn of possible price hikes coming in the near future.
The company, one of the bigger discount department store chains in the US, held an earnings call on May 21 where it reported some less-than-stellar first quarter numbers. Overall sales for Target fell nearly 3% during the first three months of 2025, compared to the same timeframe last year. The number of transactions, in-store and online, dipped 2.4%, while customers also spent 1.4% less.
CEO Brian Cornell said that uncertainty around Trump’s tariffs was one of the reasons customers pulled back on spending, even as the full effects of those import taxes might not be felt for a little while. He also acknowledged the consumer backlash to Target dialing back its diversity, equity and inclusion efforts — in line with an executive order from Trump targeting such programs — as another cause.
Target chief commercial officer Rick Gomez said that future price hikes are just one of the options the company is considering to deal with tariff shocks. He stressed that this was a “last resort” option, adding that Target could also negotiate new deals with vendors or alter the schedule on which it orders products.
“We have many levers to use in mitigating the impact of tariffs and price is the very last resort,” Gomez said.
During its own recent earnings call, Walmart warned that price hikes on things like toys, tech and food were inevitable and likely to be implemented by the summer. Trump has routinely lashed out at companies that have blamed his tariffs for price hikes, notably going after Amazon over a rumor that it would begin listing the impacts of tariffs in its prices. After Trump’s response, the company claimed this was never its plan.
