Target Returns to Canada With Private Label Kids Line

Target has agreed to distribute its Cat & Jack private label children’s apparel brand inside Hudson’s Bay, marking its return to Canada retailing.

Cat & Jack will get a dedicated space inside Hudson’s Bay locations. Prices in Canadian dollars range from $7 to $35, with an average price of $15.

In 2011, Target entered Canada with its acquisition of a portion of the Zellers chain to mark its first international expansion. By 2015, Target announced it was closing all 133 Canadian locations after losing $2 billion on the venture. The failure was blamed on a poor expansion plan, the aggressive timeline, constant understocks, and high pricing.

Target’s entry into Canada had been strongly hyped, as Target’s own research showed that 70% of Canada’s population was already familiar with the “cheap chic” brand, with 10% having shopped online or crossed the border to shop at Target’s U.S. stores.

Hudson Bay is betting Target’s reputation up north hasn’t taken too much of a hit.

“We’re listening to customers, and are very focused on delivering an assortment that is relevant and reflects what Canadian families are looking for,” said Liz Rodbell, president and CEO of Hudson’s Bay, in a press release. “Cat & Jack will be key in our kids assortment, and we know our customers will be excited that they can now get this loved brand in Canada.”

Cat & Jack, which launched in 2016, already is a $3-billion-a-year business for Target. On its fourth-quarter analyst call, Jill Sando, Target’s chief merchandising officer of apparel and accessories, said the company sells more than 300 million units of the product line annually, “which comes out to about eight Cat & Jack items for every child in America under the age of 12.”

Overall, Target has 11 brands, also including Threshold and Good & Gather, that generate at least $1 billion or more in annual sales.

Bill Foudy, president of owned brand sourcing and development for Target, said in Hudson’s Bay’s release, “Target has an industry-leading portfolio of dozens of owned brands that deliver amazing design at an incredible value to millions of consumers.”

A popular trend recently has been retailers opening in-store shops inside other stores, with Target housing Apple, Ulta Beauty, and Disney Clubhouse shops. Gap in 2021 introduced its first-ever Gap-branded home collection in Walmart, and in 2023 it introduced an exclusive collection of Gap-branded sleepwear, underwear, and intimates at Macy’s. However, the Cat & Jack collaboration with Hudson Bay is a rare instance of a private label selling at another store.