I don’t “Hate” Target, but there are some significant problems with the shopping experience in general that you experience as positive that I believe have their own drawbacks.

1. Coupons – coupons require a surprisingly large time commitment: clipping, searching, printing (and printing and subscription costs), collating, finding at time of need, matching offered deal to product offered, etc…. The cost of use has to be considered with coupons. (On a personal note how many times have we been held up or even scrapped our plans entirely because of the need to print *%$#^*-ing coupons.)
2. Red Card, Bag Discounts, Sales, Black Friday, (coupons too) – Large corporations like parents, can reward the behaviors they want you to engage. They want to track your specific purchases. They want you to come in at specific times or move specific product. I get it, but if they can offer discounts perhaps they could simply offer lower prices and dispense with all the hassle and tracking.
3. “Fun” Shopping experience – The downside of finding “new items every time I go” is that frequently when you return for something you like, they no longer carry it. I am becoming an old curmudgeon perhaps, but I am sick of being dictated to by trend and fashion. Give me a good solid replaceable product at a reasonable price over new and trendy every time.
4 Store Layout – while we have become familiar with this particular location. If I could re-design it for ease of use over profit generation I would prefer to have a separate entrance just for grocery.

Over this holiday season we did more of shopping on line. It was a far more enjoyable shopping experience to actually going to the store. Of course, I’ll have to admit if I don’t like tracking, the on-line experience is even worse, but barring that annoyance – on-line wins, big.

Overall Target is a fine retail institution. I have no gripe with Target, specifically. They have creative advertising campaigns and a solid corporate image. I like having an on-site Starbucks. I would enjoy the shopping experience more if I could afford a cup of coffee from time to time, of course.