Battered by boycott and backlash, Target to no longer sell Pride collection in all stores

Target will no longer sell its Pride Month collection in all stores after conservative blowback over LGBTQ+ themed merchandise including bathing suits designed for transgender people harmed sales.

The retailer told USA TODAY the collection will be available on its website and in “select stores” depending on “historical sales performance.”

Target – which has a decade-long track record of featuring LGBTQ+ merchandise during Pride Month – was one of the corporations assailed for so-called “rainbow capitalism” last June during Pride Month.

Conservative activists organized boycotts and threatened Target employees over LGBTQ+ displays in stores, prompting the chain to pull some of the Pride merchandise.

Advocacy groups condemned Target for bowing to pressure.

Target said this year it will carry adult apparel, home products, food and beverages in its Pride collection that it has curated “based on guest insights and consumer research.”

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that this year's Pride collection is smaller.

The Pride merchandise will be sold in half of Target’s nearly 2,000 stores, Bloomberg reported. Usually, Target sells the collection in all of its stores.

"Target is committed to supporting the LGBTQIA+ community during Pride Month and year-round," Target said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY.

The Target boycott contributed to lower overall sales, Target executives said during earnings calls last year.

"The reaction is a signal for us to pause, adapt and learn so that our future approach to these moments balances celebration, inclusivity and broad-based appeal," Christina Hennington, Target's chief growth officer, told analysts in August.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Target scales back Pride Month collection after conservative backlash