Target vows to invest in Black brands

Target is pledging to add products from more than 500 Black-owned businesses to its inventory by the end of 2025.

The retailer also announced Wednesday that it will spend more than $2 billion with Black-owned businesses by 2025, which includes marketing agencies, construction companies, facilities maintenance providers and others.

“We have a rich history of working with diverse businesses, but there’s more we can do to spark change across the retail industry, support the Black community and ensure Black guests feel welcomed and represented when they shop at Target,” Christina Hennington, executive vice president and chief growth officer, said in a statement Wednesday.

Hennington said Target’s “bold actions” are part of the company’s commitment to advance racial equity for the Black community. “They also represent significant economic opportunity for hundreds of new Black-owned companies, who we look forward to doing business with for years to come,” she said.

The resonance of the products and representation in general, like brownskinned mermaids on children’s sheets, with Black shoppers can be seen as members of Facebook groups like Black Women Who Love TARGET

share these finds and talk about snapping up the products.

After George Floyd, a Black man who died under the knee of a white police officer in Minneapolis – where Target is headquartered – the company announced it was donating $10 million to “support nonprofit partners focused on addressing the systemic and structural barriers facing Black communities.”

The company created the REACH (Racial Equity Action and Change) committee and in September, announced plans to increase the diversity of its workforce, pledging to grow its percentage of Black employees by 20% over the next three years.

Target said it is establishing resources to support Black-owned businesses and help them grow. One of the programs, Forward Founders, will “engage Black entrepreneurs earlier in their startup journey to help them navigate the critical stages of ideation, product development and scaling for mass retail.”

Through existing programs like Target Accelerators and events like the Black-Owned Business Vendor Fair, Target says it has previously brought in diverse businesses.

A list of the brands and the products are on Target.com on its Black Beyond Measure page under “Buy Black.”