Fidelke took over as Target’s CEO last month, and in his first interview with The Associated Press he framed the job as a “Prove it” challenge: win over customers who have grown skeptical while turning around a business still reporting declining performance. Target said it plans to spend billions of dollars this year as it tries to end a persistent sales slump and reshape how the company shows up in stores.
Fiddelke, who has worked for Target for more than 20 years, said his experience across retail operations and finance gives him a long view of what can work in the chain and what has not. He also said he is pairing that background with what he described as “clear-eyed candor” about what needs to change.
The company’s situation is complicated by investor pressure that followed Brian Cornell’s departure after more than 11 years as CEO, including some investors’ view that Target should be led by an outsider. In the AP interview, Fiddelke addressed how to respond to that skepticism as the retailer posted another quarter of declining comparable sales.
Fiddelke said Target is pushing for changes tied to how product teams make decisions, including asking buyers to travel more for inspiration. He pointed to an example inside the company’s stores: he said the “Alpine Chalet” concept in Target stores in the fourth quarter drew inspiration from a European Christmas market trip, and he said the idea took longer to bring back after travel was limited during the pandemic.
He also described looking back at Target’s history as part of the effort, saying that studying prior leadership chapters can be instructive when it comes to centering the company’s core. At the same time, Fiddelke said the approach should not become nostalgia, and that “the playbook from 10 years ago is not going to win in today’s retail.”
Target’s turnaround plan arrives amid political scrutiny in Minneapolis, where the company is based. AP reported that the retailer faced pressure to take a public stand against immigration enforcement actions, including ICE crackdowns in Minneapolis, after it faced other criticism related to DEI programs. In response to AP’s questions about whether Target should do more publicly, Fiddelke said he focuses on the safety of the team and the safety of guests, describing it as the company’s “North Star” for decision-making.
Fiddelke also acknowledged that boycotts have reached the company’s sales picture. He told AP that as Target went through last year, boycotts were among the factors that affected sales, and he said Target is focused on regaining trust with customers, while saying there is “no easy button to win back trust.”
When AP asked whether Target had seen a pullback from Hispanic customers amid fear during immigration crackdowns, Fiddelke said Target’s broader performance over the last year was below where the company expected it and that he would not “call out any specific subgroups.” He also said Target is an “emotional brand” that customers love, and that the company holds itself to a high standard in product quality, the experience in its stores, and how it shows up in the communities where it operates.
In his comments to AP about navigating a shifting political and economic climate, Fiddelke said Target tries to control what it can control and to stay laser-focused on how it shows up for families and guests who depend on the retailer. He also said that when he visits stores, he hears a team that is “hungry to win,” motivated to get the company back to growth and to improve results that he said have not met expectations in recent years.