Target limits Pride merchandise to select stores after last year’s backlash

Target has Pride merchandise in fewer stores this year after backlash it received after pulling some items from last year’s collection.

Officials at the Minneapolis-based company acknowledged later in the summer that the controvery had hurt Target’s reputation.

Last year, Target sold an assortment of Pride products at all of its more than 1,900 stores. This year, it’s selling in a smaller undisclosed amount of stores based on market feedback, the company said. All of its Pride merchandise will be available online, according to a statement released Thursday.

Target, which has sold a large variety of LBGTQ-friendly products, has also reduced the number of items in the collection from past years.

Last summer, Target faced backlash through social media and conservative media outlets for some of its merchandise and also from the LBGTQ community after the company issued a vague statement about pulling some items from stock.

The outrage and subsequent calls to boycott appeared to stem from select products including swimwear made for those who identify as transgender that some incorrectly said was in children’s sizes. Target also pulled apparel and accessory items from U.K.-based brand Abprallen, which critics accused of expressing “Satanist” views in its designs. The designer — who identifies as a gay, trans man — said in an Instagram post those claims were false and based on designs that weren’t part of the three items initially sold at Target.

After the controversy, Target leaders said they would develop a more curated assortment for not only Pride celebrations but other cultural commemorations such as Black History Month as well.

“Target is committed to supporting the LGBTQIA+ community during Pride Month and year-round. Most importantly, we want to create a welcoming and supportive environment for our LGBTQIA+ team members,” the statement released on Thursday said. “Beyond our own teams, we will have a presence at local Pride events in Minneapolis and around the country, and we continue to support a number of LGBTQIA+ organizations.”

This year’s collection, the statement said, is “based on guest insights and consumer research.”

Target CEO Brian Cornell said last summer Target was right to adjust the Pride assortment and would apply what it learned from last year’s controversy to ensure it is “staying close to our guests and their expectations of Target.”

Although the company said it would be more intentional in its other collections as well, Target had to yank a civil rights magnetic learning activity made by the manufacturer Bendon from its shelve because a TikTok user pointed out it mixed up the images and names of Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois and Carter G. Woodson.