Anne Dament - Photo: Target; Twitter
Back in April of last year, a RetailWire headline asked the question, “Will Target’s new grocery boss get the job done?” Unfortunately for Anne Dament, the person handpicked by Target CEO Brian Cornell to do the job, the answer appears to be “no” as the company announced she is leaving the company less than 18 months into her tenure.
Neither Target nor Ms. Dament, a former Safeway executive, has commented on the reason for her departure at this point, according to reports. She will leave the company on Nov. 18. Mark Tritton, Target’s chief merchandising officer, will assume her duties while a replacement is sought.
Target’s same-store sales in the last quarter were down 1.1 percent as traffic declined 2.2 percent. Weakness in the company’s grocery business has been cited as one of the factors in Target’s recent struggles and its decision to lower its future forecast.
"They're just in a really tough spot," Brian Yarbrough, an analyst with Edward Jones, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "They don't have enough groceries to drive people to the store regularly. Groceries for Target never turned out to be a destination like they thought it would be."
Ms. Dament’s departure is the latest episode in the ongoing shakeup of Target’s c-suite. Last month it was announced that Jason Goldberger, who was named Target’s chief digital officer in May and who served as president of Target.com since 2014, had left the company. Mr. Goldberger’s duties were split between Mike McNamara, Target’s chief information officer, and Mr. Tritton.
- Target’s grocery chief Anne Dament is leaving – Minneapolis Star Tribune
- Target’s leadership shakeup continues, grocery chief steps down – Reuters
- Target’s Grocery Chief to Leave – The Wall Street Journal (sub. required)
- Will c-suite shakeup lead to better digital results for Target? – RetailWire
- Will Target’s new grocery boss get the job done? – RetailWire