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Target said Jason Goldberger, who had been with the company for
four years, will leave immediately. His role will be split
between Chief Information Officer Mike McNamara and Chief
Merchandising Officer Mike Tritton.
McNamara will be responsible for the website and digital
strategy and Tritton will take over the pricing and promotional
functions of the job.
"Taking this body of work in a new direction will help advance
our efforts in these key areas during a pivotal time for
Target," Chief Executive Brian Cornell said in a statement.
Goldberger's departure is the second high-profile exit at Target
in less than a month. Chief Marketing Officer Jeff Jones left
the company last month and joined Uber Technologies Inc
[UBER.UL].
The leadership shake up at Target comes as its rivals gear up to
better compete with Amazon. Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N> last
month splashed out over $3 billion to acquire e-commerce startup
Jet.com.
Target's online sales contribute about 3 percent to its overall
revenue. Recognizing the need to boost growth, the
Minneapolis-based retailer spent $1.4 billion in 2015 to improve
its e-commerce business.
Target also said it will spend $1.8 billion this year and $2
billion a year starting in 2017 to improve its e-commerce
operations.
Target's online revenue grew 31 percent in 2015, below the 40
percent growth Chief Executive Brain Cornell promised investors.
For the second quarter, online sales grew 16 percent, a
deceleration from 23 percent in the first quarter.
Brick-and-mortar sales have also suffered, with Target reporting
its first quarterly drop in comparable sales in two years during
the second quarter. The company lowered its forecast for the
rest of the year, saying it expects sales to be flat to down 2
percent in the two remaining quarters.
(Reporting by Nandita Bose in Chicago; Editing by Sandra Maler
and Alan Crosby)
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