Target vs. Walmart
Walmart beat rival retailer Target in this recession, but which store will win the next round?
Walmart’s “low prices” are beating Target’s “cheap chic,” said Ben Steverman in BusinessWeek, at least in this recession. Both of the “fiercely competitive” chains benefitted from consumers “trading down,” but Walmart “clearly won out in the past year” in terms of customer traffic and sales. The “crucial question,” of course, is what happens next? And as the economy recovers, things are looking brighter for Target and its “more pleasant” stores.
So long as “the ‘frugalista’ has replaced the ‘fashionista’ in Americans’ recessionary mind-set,” said Jackie Crosby in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, prices are king. And one of the “rays of hope” for Target is that it believes customers are starting to see that its prices are “as good or better” than Walmart’s.
At the same time, Walmart is trying to get “affluent shoppers” in its doors, said Douglas McIntyre in 24/7 Wall Street. Sure, it was “burned” last time it tried that, but times have changed. Walmart is now “riding a tide of positive publicity and strong sales,” and it has “nothing to lose and plenty to gain” by chasing a “new class of shoppers.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
5 hilariously sparse cartoons about further DOGE cuts
Cartoons Artists take on free audits, report cards, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Following the Tea Horse Road in China
The Week Recommends This network of roads and trails served as vital trading routes
By The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: March 30, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published