Hitting a Bull's-Eye

Laura Rowley is the author of the current best seller, "On Target: How the World's Hottest Retailer Hit a Bull's-Eye." Rowley is an award-winning television and print journalist specializing in business. She is the personal finance and career columnist for Self magazine. Her work has also appeared in the New York Times, Parents and Newsweek. She spent five years with CNN business news in New York, where she produced live segments and reported on air for Your Money and Business Unusual. Rowley has also appeared on Good Morning America, Oxygen Media and CNBC. Rowley will present the Wednesday, Sept. 24, keynote address at the 2003 P-O-P Show/Chicago.Can you share some highlights of your upcoming keynote address?Some of the insights that I plan to pass along to the audience include the following: Target is the number two discounter in the United States, second only to Wal-Mart, with more than 1,100 stores in 47 states. Target, however, attracts a better-educated, more affluent customer than its rivals, such as Wal-Mart and Kmart. A key part of Target's success derives from its corporate culture. The retailer was founded in 1962 by the department store Dayton's, that later became Dayton Hudson. The store's Midwestern values are still an important part of Target's culture. Target has developed several important channels to help it offer mass with class. One of the most important is licensing. Over the last decade, Target has begun to hire respected designers to create its own trends and offer exclusive designs at a price point its customers can afford. Target's emphasis on upscale design extends to everything it does, including the layout and merchandising environment of the stores, the uniforms its staff wears and the service it provides to its customers. Target promotes its own brand ahead of the brands it carries, so that the Target name is synonymous with fun, whimsical design. Customers don't shop at Target for a specific brand; rather they go to the store knowing that they will find merchandise they like.In your opinion, what is it about the Target brand image that is such a success? Why does the bull's-eye seem to grab consumers?Target was started by a department store, Dayton's, with a specific mission to be the industry's "upscale discounter." From the very beginning, the company knew exactly what it wanted to be, and it focused its resources on offering great design at low prices in clean, well-organized stores. It even designed the bull's-eye logo back in the 1960s.In the last two decades, as the growth of Wal-Mart made discount shopping more acceptable, Target positioned itself to capture the wealthiest customers by offering trendier merchandise in a more inviting environment, and by putting its advertising in places like the New York Times and Vogue. If you look at the ads, you'll notice that the company promotes the Target name first: It's "Target has Todd Oldham" versus "Martha Stewart is at Kmart." That emphasis makes a difference.Target's approach to advertising is similar to its licensing deals: It uses creative people who have their fingers on the pulse of style to communicate its brand. The iconic bull's-eye logo has been integral to the recent advertising strategy.Specifically regarding in-store merchandising, how does Target set itself apart from its competitors?What really struck me when I talked to customers before writing the book was how much they appreciated the simplest things: The stores are clean and the signage is unambiguous. The aisles are wide enough for at least two carts in most stores, so you're not having jousting matches with other customers. There are no dump bins blocking the way, no towering pallets of product, no merchandise spilled on the floor. The lighting is bright but not garish, and it's quiet -- there's no Muzak!The merchandise is organized and displayed like a specialty store or a department store. These are incredibly simple things, but Target has focused an enormous amount of energy on executing them and customers really appreciate them.Please discuss the Swell brand, which was created for Target by your cousin, Cynthia Rowley. How will this strengthen Target? The Swell collection was actually created by my cousin and her writing partner, Ilene Rosenzweig, a former style editor at the New York Times. The two wrote a best-selling book a few years ago called, "Swell: A Girl's Guide to the Good Life" and followed up with several sequels, including "Swell Home" and "Swell Party." They decided product was a natural follow-up to the book series, and wanted to work with a retailer that could oversee an entire lifestyle brand. They have a broad, three-year deal with Target that includes housewares, bedding, bath, tabletop, accessories, etc.The merchandise has a fun, playful quality, such as a round beach towel so sunbathers can simply spin them-selves around when the sun moves. Prints and patterns are important in defining the Swell brand. By the way, the fact that my cousin is doing a line for Target and I wrote a book on the company was a really weird coincidence -- totally unrelated.As for strengthening Target, I think the Swell collection is another good example of the licensing strategy that has allowed the company to differentiate itself from its competitors.Can any Target marketing tactic be used as an example of how CPG marketers can strengthen their own brands?The way Target marketed its first "New York Area Opening" was particularly clever -- because they were actually opening a store in Menlo Park, New Jersey. The company's agency devised a print ad featuring the bull's-eye logo with the line, "If you know what this symbol means, call 888-100-1235," and ran it in high-quality media, including the New York Times. A tidal wave of calls overwhelmed the number and it had to be shut down. The strategy was to get the brand's evangelists excited first. Instead of sending a broad message to everyone, the store sent a targeted message to displaced Midwesterners who have an emotional connection to the brand. The idea was, get these folks excited and they'll tell 10 friends -- and it worked, the opening was a success.In general, your book is very complimentary to Target and its management. How helpful was the company when you were doing your research?As a matter of fact, Target officials never cooperated with me when I was researching my book. They never gave me a single interview. All of my research was based on interviews with customers and former Target employees. It wasn't that the company was trying to hide anything. They just don't like to talk about themselves.

Hitting a Bull's-Eye

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