The Target Logo is great at serving two functions. It’s a bright, easily recognizable symbol for the brand — and it’s also an eye that looks deep into your soul and convinces you to load your cart with things you don’t need.
Like an entire collection of ceramic woodland creatures.
And where Target succeeds the most in their trickery is the “Target Dollar Spot.” With items that seem pulled straight from your personal Pinterest page, such as brightly colored desk supplies, holiday décor, and Etsy inspired craft kits — Targ is killing it. They know exactly who’s stepping into the 12x12 dollar maze, and they know exactly what you want.
Many old school Target lovers may have noticed an upgrade in these items over the past year or two. Not everything is $1 but usually in the range of $1-$5 (still a price we can justify to ourselves) and as I mentioned above, the items are more on-trend for their “target” audience. These changes might be due to consistent decrease of sales, about 1.1% per quarter.
So, as if you need more justification for getting back to Target, check out my top reasons why The Dollar Spot deserves your attention.
#1. “Light Borrowing” from Popular Brands
If you love cute office supplies and art prints, then you know Rifle Paper Co. The folksy floral self-proclaimed “stationary and lifestyle” company that was suddenly everywhere in late 2014. You’d probably recognize them from their popular planner designs and notecards:
I coveted the $35 planner for a while before I was finally convinced that no amount of flowery paper could change that fact that my planner lives in my phone and always will. Even a pad of paper or set of notecards can run you $20 at Rifle.
That’s when I noticed something new in Target’s infamous dollar section.
Looks familiar right? Something tells me this is no coincidence on the part of Target. I haven’t seen news of a lawsuit yet, so nothing stopped me from picking up a couple of $2 pads of paper.
#2 Every Day is a Holiday
Not all of us have the budget to hang 100 strands of lights around Christmas, or to set a Thanksgiving table straight out of a Crate & Barrel Catalogue. Some of us hardly have the budget for a jumbo bag of Halloween candy.
However, at Target we’re all regular Martha Stewarts. Grab some colorfully painted pumpkins, a rustic-looking sign to hang on the front door, a few scented candles and voila! You’ve transformed your house into a home worthy of inviting a few friends over to watch the Charlie Brown special.
Decorations make me feel like a real adult. It’s not paying bills, or going to work — it’s the mat at the front door, and runner on the table. And I think we can all appreciate that feeling.
#3 You can craft it
Patterned paper, adhesive flowers, peel-and-stick letters: it’s pretty clear that Target wants you to take these and run (to the register) as well as with your imagination. Just take a look at Etsy, Pinterest, or your favorite blog – besides mine – to understand the craft craze of 2016 and beyond.
Target seems to understand pretty well. And by doing so they’ve tapped into a whole new level of DIY love. Just a simple search of “Target Crafts” will bring up thousands of tutorials for handmade projects using supplies from (you guessed it) the dollar section.
Interested in learning how to make a fall wreath with dollar supplies? Bloggers have you covered. (http://theturquoisehome.com/diy-target-dollar-spot-fall-wreath/)
There’s plenty of reasons to love the dollar section, and I’ve only just scratched the surface. It’s also a refuge for moms and dads with squirmy youngsters - who can be instantly occupied with a section full of activity books, racecars, stickers, and all the glow sticks you can imagine.
It’s an avoidable trap, and we love falling for it. You know you didn’t need to get 3 pairs of cat socks, cactus magnets, AND a new phone case. But chances are you’ll be back when it’s time for another Target run (two days from now).
But aside from the excessive, it’s also a remedy for many small emergencies: broken aux cord, sweet tooth, forgot to get a going-away present for the office intern.
I love Target, chances are you do too. And as far as branding goes, they’re right on the mark.
And just because I love it, here are some more people I found on Instagram who are killing it at the dollar decorating game.
Find anything cool in the dollar section lately? Let me know below!