It looks like the Target boycott is actually having an impact, and it isn’t even June yet.

As we talked about yesterday, the sane people are finally starting to wake up and reject what Target is pushing during “Pride Month.” I don’t know if the “tuck-friendly” swimsuits or the Satanist-designed “pride” merchandise was the bridge too far, but the backlash is real and the numbers are reflecting it.

Target has lost $9 billion in market value since angry social media users called for a boycott of the Minneapolis-based retailer over its rollout of the “PRIDE” collection featuring LGBTQ-friendly clothing for children.”

A week ago Wednesday before the controversy erupted, Target’s stock closed at $160.96 a share, giving the big-box chain a market capitalization of $74.3 billion.”

As of early trading on Thursday, however, shares of the company were trading off 1% at $141.76 — capping a weeklong tumble that has shrunk the “cheap chic” discount retailer’s value to $65.3 billion.”

That amounts to a 12% drop that has shaved a whopping $9 billion off the company’s market capitalization.”

Now, those number are merely the trading value. They don’t actually tell us anything about how company sales are going. But success builds upon success, and if the sane people are dumping stock to the tune of a 12% sell off, then something is going to happen to the sales numbers. If Target ends up taking it on the chin in earnings at the end of June, it’s not just a backlash for their decisions – it’s a red-alert-flashing-lights-alarm-blaring wake-up call to every single other corporate entity that thinks that they must sell “pride” in June because everyone else does.

Looking at you, North Face.

Can anyone explain how the heck this ad helps @thenorthface sell outdoor clothes? They’re screaming at you to not buy their products if this violates your values. Accept their challenge. The North Face is owned by the VF Corporation which also owns Supreme, Vans, and Timberland. pic.twitter.com/9RwVljsa9N

— Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) May 24, 2023

But back to Target. The Minnesota-based company is still trying to cling to their leftist credentials, even though they’re moving or removing “Pride Month” displays in order to try and save themselves from a boycott. Yeah, no one wants the “Bud Light” treatment, and Target is definitely afraid that it is happening.

Which is why it’s time to PIVOT!!!!! Quick, call an audible and invoke George Floyd!

BREAKING: I have obtained the internal email that @Target sent to their employees following the Pride month disaster that has caused them to lose $9B in one week, where is goes from standing with the "LGBTQIA+ community" to the anniversary of George Floyd lmfao. pic.twitter.com/GQVgrdmHDv

— Greg Price (@greg_price11) May 25, 2023

The company-wide message reads:

Yesterday was a very hard day for Target, and as CEO Brian Cornell said, thank you for the care you’ve shown each other, our frontline teams, and the LGBTQIA+ community.”

Today brings more reflection, pain and the need for continued care as our team, hometown, and world remember the anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. As you make space to take care of yourself and each other, know that you can always tap into these tools from Team Member Life Resources, and as Mental Health Awareness Month continues, turn to the Take Five to Take Care hub for more well-being support.”

Why was yesterday a “very hard day” for the company? Was it the market drop? Or was it them realizing that they had to fix something before they really did lose real money, and getting called out on it by the likes of Gavin Newsom?

Bringing up the death of George Floyd, though, feels gross. Target Corporate has commented frequently about George Floyd, especially since they are headquartered in Minneapolis. Target stores were looted during the riots. In April 2021, CEO Brian Cornell used Floyd’s death to recommit himself and the company to social justice causes.

“I recognize that it’s time to take it to another level, and that as CEOs, we have to be the company’s head of diversity and inclusion,” he said. “We have to be the role models that drive change and our voice is important. And we’ve got to make sure that we represent our company principles, our values, our company purpose on the issues that are important to our teams.”

Last May, in the days that immediately followed, Cornell said Target put together a special committee to look at steps the company could take to make its workforce, C-suite and business practices better reflect the country’s diversity. He said Target considered how it could support and provide advancement opportunities for Black employees, play a role in communities and “use our voice on a national level, as we impact civic discussions and policy.”

Cornell touted the diversity of Target’s workforce of more than 350,000 employees, including its board and leadership team. Over half of its approximately 1,900 stores are led by female store directors and over a third are led by people of color, Cornell said.”

He said he wants the retailer to be a leader and was particularly aware last week during the trial’s verdict that “the eyes of America, and the eyes of the world were on Minneapolis.”

“For so many of us, we saw that verdict as a sign of progress, a sign of accountability, but also a recognition that the work is just starting,” he said.”

Even though Target Corporate has talked about George Floyd before, using his death to deflect from their actions, and try and put up some impenetrable social justice shield around themselves, isn’t going to work on disgusted parents. These are two separate issues, only tied together by Target’s insistence that everything is DEI-related.

The fact that Target is trying to clean up their mess, and hide behind the death of George Floyd, should tell us that management is deathly afraid of what might be coming.

This is what conservatives have missed in the past with failed boycott attempts. It’s not enough to simply tell people not to shop somewhere or buy something. You have to make it so they don’t want to.

— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) May 25, 2023

We have only one week until June 1st. We’re going to find out very soon just how committed corporations are to their ESG scores over their bottom line, and just how committed consumers are to making their voices heard.

Welcome Instapundit Readers!

Featured image via Robert T Bell on Wikimedia Commons, cropped, Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)