Target to spend more than $2 billion at Black-owned businesses in racial equity push

Target will spend more than $2 billion at Black-owned businesses by 2025 as part of its effort to advance racial equity. That's a significant increase in overall spending on Black-owned businesses, according to Target, though the retailer declined to be more specific Wednesday.

The Minneapolis-based company said it will add a broad spectrum of products from more than 500 Black-owned businesses and will increase its spending at more Black-owned vendors for the 1,900-store chain, from marketing to construction.

It will also introduce new resources, like a dedicated team to help Black-owned suppliers scale their businesses to work with mass retail chains. The Forward Founders program builds off Target's accelerator program that helps entrepreneurs.

Target and other corporations are expanding ties with Black-owned suppliers, rethinking marketing and product choices and embracing other initiatives in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis last summer that led to protests nationwide against policy brutality and racial inequity. Prosecutors began their case Monday against the former Minneapolis officer charged in the 46-year-old's death. 

"We have a rich history of working with diverse businesses, but there's more we can do to spark change across the retail industry, support the Black community and ensure Black guests feel welcomed and represented when they shop at Target," Christina Hennington, Target's executive vice president and chief growth officer, said in a prepared statement.

Black-owned small businesses have taken the biggest hit during the coronavirus pandemic. An H&R Block survey of almost 3,000 small businesses found that 53% of Black business owners saw their revenue drop by half since the pandemic started, compared to 37% of White owners who reported similar dives. Black business owners also had more trouble establishing an online presence for their company and were more likely to have customers submit late payments, the survey said.