Online push pays off for Target

NEW YORK — Target’s strong sales streak extended through a pandemic-shrouded holiday season after a hard push online and an increased effort to provide alternatives to customers who are trying to minimize risk.

The retailer reported Wednesday that online sales surged 102% between November and December. Sales at its stores opened for a least a year rose 4.2%. Customer traffic rose 4.3%, and the average amount of sales per customer rose 12.3% as they consolidated trips to different stores during the pandemic.

And changes made during the pandemic once unthinkable have worked so well that they may become the new norm.

For example, Target closed all of its stores on Thanksgiving, traditionally the starting gun for the holiday season, rolling out discounts and specials early and over a broader period to

It will close its stores again on Thanksgiving this year.

control traffic in stores.

It said Wednesday that it will close its stores again on Thanksgiving this year and some industry watchers believe Target may not be alone.

“Despite disruptions to the traditional pattern of holiday trade, retailers were able to thrive if they put their best foot forward and stimulated consumers to buy across the whole season,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData Retail. “In our view, this means that it is even less likely retailers will return to the big sales bonanza of Thanksgiving and Black Friday even when the pandemic is over.”