Target CEO Eyes Digital, Says George Floyd Could Have Been One of His Staff
Target CEO Brian Cornell said George Floyd could have been one of his retail employees, speaking on a Thursday National Retail Federation Leadership Series webinar. That was the executive's initial reaction to Floyd's death while under police arrest in Minneapolis,…
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near the company's headquarters. The second reaction was to focus on safety as protests and rioting broke out after video of the killing spread on social media, Cornell said. Management reached out to African-American employees, an effort he began with a Zoom meeting with black officers, followed by another led by Target’s African-American business council that was attended by over 7,000. Cornell cited stories of store leaders that are pulled over by police routinely "for simply being black" as they're driving between stores, jogging or looking for a new home after relocating. The consensus was, "It’s enough. We have to drive change,” he said. The company set up a racial equality task force to determine "the right steps to take." Experts want more action: 2006160038. On business during COVID-19, Cornell said "millions and millions” of Americans learned to shop online during the pandemic. Target had 5 million new online users in Q1 and did $3 billion in sales. The five-year vision of retail’s future has been pulled forward “within a few months,” with new shopping methods accelerated in response to sheltering in place, said NRF CEO Matthew Shay.