"In an Oct. 20 statement, Target pointed to its tie-up with the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs (RICE), which supports Black small business founders with education, mentorship, and access to retail opportunities. Through RICE's Retail Readiness Academy, Target has helped fund initiatives that train emerging entrepreneurs in retail strategy and business scaling. The company also extended support through HBCU programs under its "HBCU, Always" series-an ongoing effort to connect graduates with Target's mentorship network."
"The announcement arrives just months after the resignation of CEO Brian Cornell, amid falling sales and customer traffic. Cornell's leadership had been central to Target's post-2020 DEI expansion, including its $2 billion Racial Equity Action and Change (REACH) initiative. Yet in January 2025, the company abruptly moved to end many of those DEI goals, citing a "realignment" of strategy and a focus on "business neutrality"."
"Target's rollback of DEI initiatives set off a firestorm. As Fortune reported in early 2025, civil rights activists organized a nationwide boycott in protest of the company's decision to scale back its DEI infrastructure, which had been celebrated in the wake of George Floyd's murder. The boycott came during Black History Month-symbolically amplifying the controversy-and led to dramatic declines in store traffic."
Target highlighted a partnership with the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs (RICE), which supports Black small business founders with education, mentorship, and access to retail opportunities. Target has funded RICE's Retail Readiness Academy to train entrepreneurs in retail strategy and business scaling. The company also supported HBCU programs under the "HBCU, Always" series to connect graduates with Target's mentorship network. The timing followed CEO Brian Cornell's resignation amid falling sales and customer traffic and came after Target scaled back many post-2020 DEI goals, including parts of its $2 billion REACH initiative. The DEI rollback prompted a nationwide boycott during Black History Month and led to dramatic declines in store traffic.
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