Beat that Walmart

Nothing says Fourth of July like corn on the cob, and Target made sure it captured its share of customer traffic with an unbeatable price on the indispensable summertime favorite. The company offered 10 ears for $1 as part of its promotional mix for SuperTarget customers who were also the beneficiary of incredibly sharp pricing on Hormel brand baby back ribs at $1.79 a pound. Walmart offered a price of $3.37 a pound on meat identified as, “pork loin backribs,” in a Sunday newspaper insert. Target offered consumers some great deals, but the problem is the corn and rib prices are only good at the chain’s SuperTarget stores, which represent less than 15% of the company’s store base. Even so, Target was competitive or beat Walmart on several of the other items it featured for the Fourth. For example, thirsty customers could buy two 12-packs of Pepsi products at Target for $5, while Walmart offered a 24-pack of Pepsi products for $5.98 right above a headline in its ad that said, “quench your thirst with these unbeatable prices.” Both retailers offered Doritos chips at $2 for a 14.5 ounce bag. Conspicuously absent from the Target and Walmart’s ads was charcoal.