• Business Week, Tuesday, December 1, 2009 10:42 AM

There's an entirely new vibe at a certain big-box retailer, Michelle Conlin writes: Supersize signs screaming dirt-cheap prices. And new merchandise, too: Groceries. It may sound like Wal-Mart, but don't tell that to the executives at Target behind the moves.

"We're not trying to be anyone else," maintains CEO Gregg W. Steinhafel. "We're working hard to convey both sides of our brand." Steinhafel's challenge is to compete on price without losing the cachet that made hipsters dub Target "Tarzhay."

Steinhafel's colleague in making a big deal about low prices has been the "natty" CMO, Michael Francis, who draws his inspiration from a 1952 book about retailer Marshall Field, Give the Lady What She Wants!

"It's all about making sure we know who the lady is and making sure we know what she wants," says Francis. "The lady" is a working mother in her 40s who is feeling less aspirational and more frugal nowadays. To reach her, the company is highlighting the notion that good value can be chic, too.

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