Black-owned brands urge US consumers not to boycott Target over end of diversity efforts

Arriana McLymore and Siddharth Cavale January 27, 2025 at 7:10 PM By Arriana McLymore and Siddharth Cavale NEW YORK (Reuters) – Please don’t boycott Target: That’s the message from Black founders and influencers to consumers about a blacklash against the retailer’s decision to end its diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. With the U.S. political climate trending right, the Minneapolis-based company announced the move on Friday prompting calls for a boycott of its stores from labor advocacy group We Are Somebody and a Minneapolis city council member. The campaign would be aimed at hurting the company’s sales and preventing Target from profiting from products by minority-owned companies, advocates said. But Black-owned companies and entrepreneurs urged against a boycott on Monday, saying they would lose revenue and consumer exposure, which would harm the brands more than the retailer. “If we all decide to boycott … so many of us will be affected and our sales will drop — our businesses will be hurt,” Tabitha Brown, an actress whose kitchenwares are sold at Target, said in an Instagram post. Target did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Building on previous inclusivity efforts, Target in 2022 set a goal of making a financial...