7 days ago
EXCLUSIVE Target employees reveal embarrassing Pride collection mistake amid backlash
Target knew this year's Pride collection would be under the microscope.
Still, the company made a glaring misstep: several self-identified employees have shared photos of a slip-up on the Pride clothing's hang tags.
'body copy tincidunt ut lorem ipsum,' the tags say. 'dolor sit amet, consectet adipiscing elit, sed diam ad nonummy nibh...'
If that sounds like gibberish, that's because it is. The sentences are frequently-used placeholder text for graphic designers and publishers looking to test out different fonts.
Reddit users pointed out that Target clearly forgot to finish the graphics on a heavily scrutinized collection.
'They didn't finish editing the tags on the Pride merch,' one staffer pointed out.
It looks like the incorrect tags impacted clothing items across the lineup. Pictures show placeholder text on tags for products like the 'adult athletic pant' and the 'adult woven top.'
'These kinds of mistakes do occasionally happen, but this clearly slipped through a lot of nets,' Neil Saunders, a retail expert at GlobalData, told
Several self-identified Target employees have posted pictures of the company's Pride collection hang tags on Reddit
'It's very sloppy for a product range that is supposed to be meaningful and significant.'
Saunders said the company might soon be sending new hang tags to stores to swap out the mistake.
But some shoppers, who have already felt spurned by the brand's reversal on diversity and inclusion policies, said the mistake was 'tone deaf.'
'Someone said it was Pride in the closet,' one shopper said.
Another added: 'I swear this will end up on some random Facebook page as evidence of the Pride merch being "demonic."'
Others joked that the tags would inspire more Queer art.
'Lorem Ipsum is actually my drag name,' one shopper chided.
Another added: 'Wow, they really put their heart and soul into this, didn't they?'
Target has been at the center of several culture war issues - in 2023, the CEO had to move product because right-wing activists allegedly called in bomb threats
Employees have been sounding off on Target this year as frustration about the company's negative headlines mounts
'These kinds of mistakes do occasionally happen, but this clearly slipped through a lot of nets,' Neil Saunders, a retail expert at GlobalData, told
'We're aware of the error that originated with our vendor and are working to address the issue,' a Target spokesperson said in a statement to
For years, the company has been caught in the middle of culture war fights.
The anger largely started with violent frustration over the Pride collection.
In 2023, conservative backlash started against the company when activists called out a bathing suit designed for trans swimmers.
Brian Cornell, the company's CEO, said anti-LGBT activists threatened store employees and placed bomb threats in response to the product.
He responded by moving the merchandise to the back of nationwide stores.
The right-wing anger triggered profit problems for the brand: Target said sales dropped 5.4 percent in the quarter after the backlash.
In January of this year, the company cancelled a three-year program meant to diversify its leadership team, angering some shoppers on the left.
Shoppers were closely watching this year's Pride collection to see if Target would start leaning on either political direction
The decision has spawned a new wave of customer boycotts, with liberal shoppers swearing off the brand. Sales for the company fell 2.8 percent to $23.85 billion in the quarter, the brand announced earlier this month.
Employees have been worried the drop in profits and consistent negative headlines impacting the stores will start resulting in job losses and store closures.
The company has not shut down a store since 2023, and didn't confirm if it was planning any major cuts.
Meanwhile, shoppers have been using this Pride collection as a litmus test to see whether Target would be capitulating to either side in the culture war.
