Modern MBA

Data

Target

One of the ten largest retailers in America, a big-box chain of nearly 2,000 stores selling groceries, clothing and home goods.

8 figures on Target, drawn from 3 Modern MBA case studies.

The figures

US dollars2

Against its own chart
Annual revenue in billions, 2023–24$106B7th of 9 · top $648BWhy self-checkout didn't replace cashiers
Average annual sales per store, 2021$49M2nd of 3 · top $78MHow Dollar Tree makes money selling everything for a dollar

Percentages6

Against its own chart
Cost of merchandise as a share of revenue, ten-year average71%6th of 10 · top 87%Why self-checkout didn't replace cashiers
Cost of merchandise against labor and rent, as a share of revenue, ten-year average · Cost of merchandise71%5th of 7 · top 87%Why self-checkout didn't replace cashiers
Annual gross margin, 202128.4%2nd of 3 · top 30.5%How Dollar Tree makes money selling everything for a dollar
Cost of merchandise against labor and rent, as a share of revenue, ten-year average · Labor & rent20%3rd of 7 · top 26%Why self-checkout didn't replace cashiers
Average operating margin over the last decade6.3%2nd of 8 · top 8.9%Why self-checkout didn't replace cashiers
Annual operating margin, 20245%7th of 12 · top 25%Why marijuana legalization never paid off

Case studies covering Target

Case study — Retail & brandsWhy self-checkout didn't replace cashiersAmazon's cashierless store was a thousand people in India watching cameras. Every retailer copied it anyway.15 min readCase study — Retail & brandsHow Dollar Tree makes money selling everything for a dollarA fifteenth the size of a Walmart, a better gross margin than either giant, and 700 new stores while Target opened 58.10 min readCase study — Retail & brandsWhy marijuana legalization never paid offEvery public cannabis company loses money. Three self-funded LA shops do not. Being unable to lose money is the advantage.15 min read

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