It Feels Like The Target Web Site Is A Convenience For THEM Not Us

The emergence of Amazon created a seismic shift for global retail. No one, and I mean no one, will ever go bankrupt by catering to the laziness of the human species. By allowing customers to shop in their underwear from the comfort of their BarcaLounger, Amazon put tremendous pressure on brick and mortar retailers which required their customers to put on pants, drive to the store, and then worst of all, walk around. One of the specific reasons cited for the demise of Toys R Us is that the debt service with which Bain Capital saddled the company never allowed the retailer to modernize their clunky web site to compete in the modern marketplace. Like print publications that were too late in going digital, companies that don't embrace the convenience of the web are doomed to obsolescence.

Before we go too much further, this article is not meant to address the issues with ordering exclusives, nor the existence of store exclusives in general. Those are subjects for a different day. This is just to address one particular aspect of the Target website that I personally view as becoming more and more frustrating, and it has nothing to do with exclusivity status. It occurs just as frequently with general release TVC items. As mentioned earlier, the e-commerce portals for giant retailers are supposed to make the shopping experience better for their customers in order to entice their business. Shouldn't that mean that if someone preorders a product from that web site, they should be among the first to receive it? This is certainly how it works with Walmart. Pre-orders for the first wave of LFL 50th figures were fulfilled long before they showed up at brick and mortar locations.

With Target, the opposite paradigm exists. Items that were preordered months ago increasingly show up in brick and mortar stores long before those outstanding preorders are fulfilled. I preordered the Bo-Katan wave from Target the day it was available. I saw the remnants of that wave at my local store over a month ago, yet I have to keep approving delays for my preorder that was placed in June of 2021. I finally got frustrated and just canceled my order entirely. What is the point of preordering? Those who commit to buy the product first should receive it first. With respect to collectibles, it sometimes feels like the Target online orders are fulfilled only after the brick and mortar locations have had their fill. That probably isn't an accurate statement at all, but that's the perception I get. It makes me feel that their view of the e-commerce portal is as a hedge against overstock. If the physical stores can't sell it, then they will start fulfilling the online orders.

I need to stress that this is likely not the case. It's just a whiny perception. In the case of the Droids C-3PO, the online orders were fulfilled before or simultaneously with the item arriving in stores, so the pattern isn't consistent. Then again, with the Droids Boba Fett:

Exclusive TVC Droids Boba Fett Hitting Target #hasbro #target #vintagecollection #kenner #starwars #starwarsdroids #bobafett Marlton, NJ image via Kevin B. pic.twitter.com/St3dFKtiqR

— Yakface.com (@yak_face) January 31, 2022

While those who preordered back in September are waiting in limbo, the Droids Boba Fett has been found in store.

If preorders matter, then those preorders need to be treated with respect. They are often capped so as not to deplete the entire stock, much to the chagrin of many collectors. They very act of limiting the preorders should ensure that there is enough product to go around, and there is no reason to delay fulfillment. The reward for being among the first to commit to purchase an item should be that those orders are fulfilled first. The "preorder > delay > delay > delay > sorry we had to cancel" pattern needs to be put out to pasture.

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