Target’s style makes outdoors liveable
It’s been a slow year in most retail sectors, but that’s not the case at Target, which has always been adept at jumping on trends and delivering stylish products at affordable prices. And though it is best known for its work in fashion and home decor, it has extended that expertise to developing its lawn and garden business, especially in the outdoor living area.
Target has displayed that prowess in areas such as patio furniture, fire pits and other outdoor living categories and by using slick merchandising to make its stores—especially its more spacious supercenters—a prime destination for consumers who would typically take their business to specialists like The Home Depot or Lowe’s.
“One thing they do particularly well with the young, upscale consumers they attract is to latch on to trends and really help to develop them,” said Mark Delaney, an analyst with The NPD Group. “They’re not afraid to jump into emerging trends and they do it much faster than other retailers.”
That tendency has worked well the past few years as Target has put a laser focus on outdoor living and helped develop some hot categories. A good example has been fire pits and outdoor fireplaces. According to an NPD Group study conducted in July, 23% of homeowners surveyed said they now own a fire pit or fireplace while another 14% said they plan to buy one in the near future.
To meet that demand, Target carries a wide variety of fire pits from name brands like Coleman as well as under its private label. The Target Home fire pit that sells for $129.99 features a 30-inch pit made of stainless steel that is ringed with mosaic tile, giving it the look of more expensive pieces.
TARGET CORP.| HEADQUARTERS | Minneapolis, Minnesota |
| STORES W/L&G DEPTS. | 1,450e |
| AVERAGE SIZE OF L&G DEPARTMENT | 3,000 sq. ft. |
Baker said he was impressed by the lineup he saw at Target during a recent store visit. “I went to a home improvement club first and they had one or two fire pits and a lot of product that was just out of stock,” said Delaney. “And then I went to Target and they had a full palette of their private label brand along with six or seven fire pits from other manufacturers.”
Target has become such a big player in the category that they’ve made it difficult for trade associations like the Hearth, Patio and Barbecue Association to track sales. “You have big players [like Target] selling a lot of fire pits and they don’t share sales information,” said HPBA spokesman Don Johnson. “So the business is certainly growing but it’s become difficult to estimate an annual sales figure.”
Outdoor living furniture and accessories is another area Target has jumped into with vigor. It made its biggest move in 2006 when it rolled out an exclusive line of items in stores from upscale supplier Smith & Hawken. And for the past few years, it has merchandised products like patio furniture, grills and garden decor all in one area to give consumers an example of what they can do in their own backyards. As always, the assortments in patio furniture address multiple tastes and price points and tend to include its own Target Home brands as a starting point.
Target promoted the category line this year under the banner Open-Air Chic and has products ranging from a 7-piece aluminum patio set from Sean Conway for $249 to an 8-piece set from Lexington for $899. It also has gas grills from name brands like Thermos starting at $179. And while Target doesn’t focus very heavily on lawn and garden staples such as lawn mowers, blowers and weed whackers, it carries an adequate selection at price points that appeal to people who aren’t home improvement diehards—a Black & Decker Electric Mower for $159.99 and a McCullough Electric 7-Amp Blower for $39.99, for example.
“They appeal to young home owners who need basic tools but don’t want to spend a lot of money,” said Delaney.
In the outdoor decor area, Target carries an eclectic mix of products and many with a Far East theme like the Bronze Elephant ($17.99) and the Buddha Fountain with Lights ($599.99) along with more traditional items like a Zinc Birdbath ($80) and a Serenity Globe Light ($19.99).
On the whole, Target is likely to make an even bigger push into outdoor living products heading into next year. How big a push it makes depends partly on the duration of the housing market slump, which has produced sharp cuts in same-store sales at home improvement centers and made other retail channels more attractive to suppliers.
“With sales at home improvement centers slowing down, I think a lot of manufacturers are going to migrate to retailers like Target to get their product in front of more consumers,” said Delaney.