Target cuts dozens of jobs in marketing

Target Corp. cut dozens of marketing positions this week.

A spokeswoman for the Minneapolis-based retailer declined to share the number of jobs eliminated, but said the reductions amount to 0.3% of its corporate workforce.

Target has about 7,100 corporate employees who work in downtown Minneapolis, as well as thousands more who work at the campus in Brooklyn Park. In addition, it has other corporate employees around the U.S. and in India.

The layoffs come as Target is trying to pull itself out of a sales slump as consumers have pulled back spending amid economic pressures. Its comparable sales have slid for three consecutive quarters and executives said last week they expect sales to continue to be down in the first quarter of this year.

Executives expect sales trends to improve later in the year, forecasting sales growth for this year to be flat to up 2%.

Lisa Roath, who was elevated to the role of chief marketing officer last year, sent an email to marketing employees on Monday about the “difficult decision” to cut positions.

She noted the company has charted an “ambitious and exciting vision” for the future of marketing by focusing on Target being a brand that customers can’t live without. That vision, she said, is critical to helping Target recapture growth.

Marketing leaders have done a “careful evaluation of the resources and capabilities” needed to make it happen, she added.

“This has set us up to shift with confidence toward bigger, bolder and more focused projects that we can bring to market with greater efficiency,” she wrote. “But, in this process, we’ve also had to acknowledge that some roles on our team will no longer be needed.”

She added that all employees whose positions have been cut were notified earlier Monday and will remain with the company for 60 days during which they can focus on searching and applying for new roles, including other open jobs at Target.