News Summary

  • Target Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Lisa Roath said on Wednesday's second-quarter earnings call that inventory availability for the company's most frequently purchased products has reached its "strongest level in recent years," as part of its ongoing efforts to improve on-shelf stock.
  • During the critical test of ensuring product supply during the back-to-school season, Target better handled shopping peaks through closer collaboration among supply chain, merchandising, and store operations teams, as well as improved planning tools.
  • Roath said: "By pre-positioning inventory and reserving trailer capacity for key seasonal items, we improved product availability in high-volume stores and created a more reliable and enjoyable experience for customers during these important seasons."

Deep Insights

Target is focused on enhancing inventory reliability—an area where it has faced challenges in the past—while its overall transformation plan is also making progress. In May, the company emphasized the importance of inventory availability when it announced the hiring of former Walmart executive Jeff England as Executive Vice President and Chief Supply Chain and Logistics Officer.

Although Roath did not disclose specific product availability figures, she said that recent improvements in this area mean more customers "finish their shopping with everything they came to Target to buy, which is one of the most important ways we build trust."

However, Roath noted that Target still has room for improvement. The company will continue to pursue stronger inventory reliability, with the ultimate goal of "achieving greater consistency across all stores and all categories."

One way Target is boosting its inventory momentum is through technology tools, such as Proxima—a digital twin of its mid-range inventory positioning system, announced on August 13. Proxima simulates the impact of supply chain decisions before inventory teams execute them, aiming to improve product flow and availability.

Roath said: "Proxima helps us more efficiently evaluate inventory processes between stores and warehouses, allowing teams to quickly understand potential downstream impacts, learn faster, and make inventory decisions with greater confidence."

In addition to inventory reliability, Target is also driving faster delivery speeds. The company's same-day and next-day fulfillment volume grew nearly 30% year over year in the second quarter, and Roath said Target "will continue to invest to become faster."