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Target said on Tuesday it is slashing prices on 2,000 items ahead of the holiday season to woo inflation-battered customers.
The Minneapolis-based retailer will be cutting prices on both national brands and its own private labels. Customers will see lower prices on gifts like toys and beauty products, as well as everyday items like food and medicine.
Target is offering its largest holiday collection this year, including thousands of toys – more than half of which cost less than $20.
A LEGO Technic 2022 Ford Kit will cost $95.99, down from $119.99, the retailer said.
Bluey Fire Trucks will retail for $19.99, down from $24.99.
Target shoppers can host their friends and families for cheaper, as well, cooking up holiday dessert with Crisco Vegetable Oil – now $4.79, down from $5.29 – and serving coffee with Coffee Mate creamer – now $4.99, down from $5.29.
Target announced the plan ahead of a shorter-than-usual holiday season, which is adding pressure to an already-squeezed industry.
Former Target vice chairman Gerald Storch last week warned that holiday spending will likely disappoint this year as consumers run low on savings due to sticky inflation and scrimp on spending over geopolitical uncertainties.
“It’s very clear that consumers are running out of money,” Storch, also the former CEO of Toys ‘R’ Us in the 2000s and early 2010s, told Fox Business. “They’re increasingly stressed by inflation and the exhaustion of their pandemic-era savings.”
When asked about his expectations for the holiday shopping season this year, Storch was blunt: “[I don’t expect] too much, frankly.”
It is not the first time this year Target is lowering prices to win back customers.
In May, the retailer said it would cut prices on about 5,000 items.
Target said it surpassed this goal and slashed price tags on more than 8,000 items so far this year.
The company expects it will lower prices on more than 10,000 items this year in total.
“We know families are excited to celebrate the holidays, so Target is committed to helping them find joy without compromise – with great products across our assortment at even lower prices,” Rick Gomez, Target’s executive vice president and chief commercial officer, said in a statement on Tuesday.
In August, Target raised its full-year profit forecast and reported its first increase in quarterly comparable sales in more than a year as discounts and deals swayed customers to return to stores.
Rival discount chain Walmart has found similar success by keeping prices low as consumers prioritize deals.
