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Target’s Juan Galarraga: “We do more than embrace differences, we seek them out.”

Juan Galarraga, Vice President of Store Supply Chain and Operations at Target, is the retailers main executive when it comes to pave the way for Latinos within the company and creating strong relationships with Hispanic guests. We talked with Galarraga and asked him how his objectives relate to Target's overall marketing and advertising strategy.

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Juan Galarraga, Vice President of Store Supply Chain and Operations at Target, is the retailers main executive when it comes to pave the way for Latinos within the company and creating strong relationships with Hispanic guests. We interviewed Galarraga and asked him how his objectives relate to Target’s overall marketing and advertising strategy.

Portada: How many Hispanic employees does Target have, and what percentage are they of the total number of employees?
Juan Galarraga, Vice President of Store Supply Chain and Operations at Target: “At Juan GalarragaTarget, we do more than embrace differences — we seek them out. Having a diverse, multi-faceted team lets us put the best brains and right talent to work for our business. While we cannot provide a comprehensive demographic breakdown of our 361,000 team members, I can share that the ethnic minority makeup of our team member population in 2012 was 43 percent. This team member makeup is seven percentage points higher than the U.S. population, according to the 2010 U.S. Census, which was 36 percent.” What areas of your marketing endeavors targeting Hispanics are you particularly investing in (e.g. Video content, owned content, print advertising etc.)? J.G.: “We are committed to serving the diverse needs of the Hispanic communities across the country and proudly celebrating the spirited life and diverse culture of our guests in our marketing efforts. For example, we: · Ensure that our broadcast ads, in-store marketing and print ads capture our guests’ diverse backgrounds, lifestyles and interests. · Are partnering with Univision personality and Latin style expert Rodner Figueroa to serve as a Target style expert and curate looks for his Pinterest board on Target’s Pinterest page. · Launched Target.com/farmacia, a Spanish-language website that includes information about our pharmacy products and services. · Sponsor events that celebrate the Hispanic culture, including the Festival People en Español (two years), Latin Billboard Music Awards (six years), the National Council of La Raza’s ALMA Awards (four years), and the TV show, Mira Quién Baila (three years). · For the first time in recent history, we had one cohesive campaign for the season—with a creative idea that focused on the guest mindset and behavior: My Kind of Holiday (“Así Festejo Yo”). My Kind of Holiday celebrated the series of events and traditions that make up our guests’ holiday season each year. · During the holiday season we encouraged guests to share their holiday stories across all of their social media channels using the hashtag #MyKindofHoliday or #AsiFestejoYo. We will look for ways to bring stories to life in short videos on Target’s social media channels, including Vine, Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook.

Are you using mobile coupons to target the Hispanic demographic, if so how are they working (Hispanics tend to see coupons as not that positive)?
J.G.: “While we are unable to share a breakdown on demographics, I can share that more guests continue to sign up to take advantage of this convenient way to save. The coupons are available in the Target app or via Apple’s Passbook. Guests can also choose to receive the coupons via text message. The coupons are redeemed by the cashier scanning a single barcode on guests’ phones when they check out. Cartwheel, a digital savings program, allows guests to choose from hundreds of offers available throughout a Target store. These offers go with you whenever you have your mobile phone, and can be shared with friends on Facebook. To date, more than 2 million users have saved more than $7 million using Cartwheel. And both figures are growing fast!”

What are the main characteristics of a Target store that is mostly oriented toward the Hispanic demographic versus one that has few or no Hispanic visitors?
J.G.: “All of Target’s guests have unique preferences, including our Hispanic guests, and so we must thoughtfully layer those preferences into our merchandising efforts. Target stores located in Hispanic communities offer products designed to enhance our Hispanic guests’ shopping experience based on their community’s wants and needs. This means that our Los Angeles stores may carry different brands and products than our Miami stores. Overall, Target stores in Hispanic markets strive to deliver a welcoming in-store experience through a merchandise assortment of national and unique brands that our guests love. Spanish-speaking team members who can provide assistance in-language and reflect the diversity in their communities to ensure all guests feel welcome at Target. Unique merchandise displays and bilingual signage in select stores for easy navigation, from the moment our guests enter our doors and throughout their entire shopping experience.”

How does Target market to prospective Hispanic team members (recruitment)?
a.) In terms of the message it uses.
J.G.: “Target is committed to creating a workplace where team members feel welcome, valued and respected regardless of their background or life experiences, and we communicate that to prospective team members. When we open new stores, we hire store team members from the local community as much as possible. Each community with a new Target store hosts job fairs where prospective applicants can learn more about open positions and how to apply.”
b.) In terms of the media it uses.
J.G.: “To ensure we hire and retain Hispanic talent, we partner with several Hispanic organizations, including the National Society of Hispanic MBAs, Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting, Hispanic Scholarship Fund and Hispanic National Bar Association. In addition, Target’s Hispanic Business Council helps facilitate Target’s participation at some of the top diversity conferences in the United States.”

How is Target’s overall marketing to this consumer connected with its recruitment advertising?
J.G.: “Target’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is reflected in the way we engage in the community, which includes our innovative programs, partnerships, recruitment, sponsorships and volunteerism. We recognize that our guests continue to become more diverse, especially as the Hispanic population continues to grow, and we must ensure our marketing proudly celebrates the spirited life and diverse culture of our guests.”

In terms of creating strong relationships with Hispanic guests: What role does content marketing play (e.g. content in owned media e.g. Social Media or Spanish-language websites)?
J.G.: “The cultural influences of our guests, team members and local communities inspire and inform Target’s business choices every day. It’s how we connect with them emotionally on television, drive them to our online experience and give them content they can share with their friends. Social media is not just an important part of our advertising mix but it also serves as a critical platform for building brand love through guest engagement. Target is active on Tumblr, Pinterest, YouTube, A Bullseye View, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Linked In. We use these outlets to share enthusiasm about our brand, including Hispanic efforts such as our partnership with Emilio Estefan, Billboard Latin Music Awards, Festival People en Español and the ALMA Awards. In addition, this year we launched a Pinterest board featuring style trends from Univision personality and Latin style expert Rodner Figueroa and conducted a Twitter Chat with Rodner via our @TargetStyle Twitter handle. We also routinely partner with Hispanic personalities such as Emilio Estefan, Ingrid Hoffmann, Kika Rocha and Ana Quincoces on our behind-the-scenes online magazine, A Bullseye View.
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