target
Local employees: 7,100
Hometown support
Target Center and the Minnesota Timberwolves (since 1990): In August 1990, two months before the Minnesota Timberwolves opened their arena, Target signed a 15-year, $18.75 million naming-rights deal for the venue. The sponsorship has been renewed several times since and is the oldest active naming-rights deal in sports.
Minnesota Lynx (1999): Last year became the first partner of the Minnesota Lynx Changemakers platform, a venture focused on building the next generation of female leaders and growing and elevating women’s sports throughout Minnesota.
Target Field (2008) and the Minnesota Twins (mid-1980s): Signed a 25-year naming-rights deal 19 months before the new downtown ballpark opened and kicked in $4.5 million for Target Plaza, a public space at the venue.
Minnesota United FC (2017): Became the new club’s first team jersey sponsor.
Target USA Cup (2019): Title sponsor of the world’s largest annual youth soccer tournament.
As the Minnesota Timberwolves were making their longest playoff run in two decades over the past few weeks, fans from the Twin Cities were packing Target Center and the surrounding area. Meanwhile, children filled the Target-branded Bullseye’s Backyard kids lawn at Target Field. These experiences not lost on their longtime naming-rights partner.
“Investing in sports deepens Target’s connections with people and local communities through a sense of shared fandom,” said Lisa Roath, Target’s executive vice president and CMO. “We customize these sponsorships and engagements to each fan base, and by doing so, we’ve seen increased brand preference and weekly shopping frequency among local guests.”
Target is a longtime downtown retailer, with headquarters a little more than a Harmon Killebrew home run away from the ballpark. Roath said the company “designs gift cards and coupon offerings for specific sports audiences and specific games, which leads to redemption rates two to three times higher than gift cards and coupons in other situations.”
