Target’s Chief Merchant Resigns, Company Names Michael Fiddelke evp and CFO

Target announced the resignation of chief merchant Mark Tritton. Tritton has more than 30 years of experience in the retail industry and was announced as Bed Bath and Beyond’s new President and CEO effective in November. With Tritton’s departure, Christina Hennington and Jill Sando, two Target executives with deep expertise and nearly 40 years of combined experience with the company, will assume interim leadership of the retailer’s merchandising organization.  

Target’s Chairman and CEO Brian Cornell said, “Mark brought a tremendous amount of energy to his role as our chief merchant. His focus on developing the next generation of leadership, establishing a comprehensive merchandising strategy and re-energizing our owned brand portfolio are among his most meaningful contributions,” Cornell said. “Along with the entire Target team, I wish him the best. As we head into the holiday season and beyond, Christina and Jill are well positioned to lead our merchandising organization given their strong business acumen and extensive experience driving ambitious and successful merchandising strategies,” he said.

Target also announced Michael Fiddelke as evp and CFO effective in the beginning of November. In this role, Fiddelke is responsible for financial planning and analysis, financial operations, internal audit, accounting, investor relations, treasury, tax and risk. He will also oversee Target’s Financial and Retail Services, which includes guest relations and management of its financial products, including Target RedCard.

With more than 15 years at Target, Fiddelke served in a variety of roles across finance, merchandising, human resources and operations. Most recently, he served as SVP of Operations leading numerous cross-functional enterprise initiatives spanning merchandising, supply chain, stores and guest experience. He is being appointed after an extensive evaluation of internal and external candidates.

“After concluding an extensive global search, it’s clear that Michael is the right leader for this role,” Cornell said. “With his engineering training and his deep financial experience, Michael is extremely talented at diagnosing and solving complex organizational challenges and driving business results. He is respected as a highly collaborative business partner and will bring a modern approach to financial and enterprise leadership for Target,” he said.