Brian Cornell

Brian Cornell
Cornell in 2024
Brian Cornell
Born	1959
Birthplace	New York City, New York, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Business executive
Title	Chairman and CEO of Target Corporation
Known for	Leading Target Corporation as chairman and CEO
Spouse(s)	Martha Cornell
Children	2
Awards	CNN Business CEO of the Year (2019)

Brian C. Cornell (born 1959) is an American business executive who served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Target Corporation from 2014 until February 1, 2026. Over more than a decade at the helm of one of the largest retailers in the United States, Cornell oversaw a significant transformation of Target's business model, investing billions in store renovations, same-day fulfillment services, and private-label brands. His tenure saw periods of strong growth and shareholder returns as well as stretches of declining performance and public controversy. Before joining Target, Cornell held senior leadership positions at several major consumer-facing companies, including PepsiCo, Sam's Club, Safeway, and Michaels Stores. He was the first outsider to be appointed CEO in Target's history, succeeding Gregg Steinhafel, who had resigned amid a massive data breach. In August 2025, Cornell announced he would step down as CEO effective February 1, 2026, with chief operating officer Michael Fiddelke named as his successor. Cornell transitioned to the role of executive chairman of Target's board of directors. He also serves as non-executive chairman of Yum! Brands.

Early Life

Brian C. Cornell was born in 1959 in New York City, New York. Details about his upbringing and family background prior to his college years are not extensively documented in public sources. He grew up in the New York metropolitan area before eventually pursuing higher education in California.

Education

Cornell earned a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He studied economics at the university. UCLA's Anderson School of Management has recognized Cornell among its notable alumni and affiliates.

Career

Early Career and Pre-Target Roles

Before arriving at Target, Cornell built a career spanning several decades in consumer retail and packaged goods industries. He held leadership positions at a series of prominent companies. Among his early senior roles, Cornell served in executive capacities at PepsiCo, where he gained experience in the consumer packaged goods sector.

Cornell subsequently became the president and CEO of Michaels Stores, the arts and crafts retail chain. He also served as CEO of Sam's Club, the membership warehouse club division of Walmart, where he oversaw operations of the warehouse retailer and gained significant experience in large-scale retail management. Additionally, he held the position of executive vice president and chief commercial officer at Safeway, one of the largest supermarket chains in North America.

These roles across diverse retail and consumer goods sectors—spanning warehouse clubs, specialty retail, grocery, and packaged foods—gave Cornell a broad base of experience that Target's board would later view as valuable for revitalizing the Minneapolis-based retailer.

Appointment as Target CEO

In August 2014, Target Corporation named Brian Cornell as its chairman and CEO, making him the first external hire to lead the company in its history. Cornell succeeded Gregg Steinhafel, who had resigned from the position earlier that year in the wake of a massive data breach in late 2013 that compromised the personal and financial information of tens of millions of Target customers. The breach had severely damaged the company's reputation and financial performance, and Target's board sought a leader who could stabilize the business and chart a new strategic direction.

At the time of his appointment, some industry observers questioned whether an outsider could successfully navigate Target's distinct corporate culture, which had long been led by executives who had risen through the company's ranks. Retail analyst Walter Loeb, writing in Forbes, noted that while Cornell had a strong resume, he lacked experience with Target's specific brand identity and innovative merchandising approach.

Strategic Transformation of Target

Cornell launched a broad strategic overhaul of Target's operations during his tenure. Among the most significant initiatives was a multibillion-dollar investment in renovating and modernizing Target's store fleet. The company also invested heavily in developing same-day fulfillment capabilities, including in-store order pickup, drive-up service, and same-day delivery through the Shipt platform, which Target had acquired. These investments proved particularly significant during the COVID-19 pandemic, when demand for contactless shopping surged.

Under Cornell's leadership, Target also expanded its portfolio of private-label and exclusive brands, launching dozens of owned brands across apparel, home goods, food, and other categories. This strategy was designed to differentiate Target from competitors such as Walmart and Amazon by offering products that could not be purchased elsewhere.

The company's stock price and comparable sales experienced a period of strong growth in the years following these investments. Target's performance during the pandemic, in particular, saw substantial revenue gains as the retailer was classified as an essential business and benefited from shifts in consumer spending patterns.

Contract Extension and Continued Leadership

In September 2022, Target announced that Cornell had agreed to a contract extension that would keep him in his role for approximately three more years, through at least 2025. The extension came as Target was dealing with a downturn in performance following the pandemic-era boom. The company had been forced to mark down excess inventory as consumer spending shifted away from the discretionary goods categories—such as home décor and electronics—in which Target had experienced outsized growth during the pandemic.

Cornell's compensation during his tenure at Target was substantial. According to the Star Tribune, his total pay packages placed him among the highest-paid CEOs in the retail industry.

Challenges and Controversies

Cornell's tenure was not without significant challenges. Following the strong performance during the pandemic years, Target experienced a period of declining comparable sales and profit margin pressure. The company struggled with excess inventory in 2022, which required aggressive markdowns and contributed to a sharp decline in profitability.

In the years leading up to his departure, Target faced public controversy over its corporate policies, including debates surrounding its merchandise and marketing decisions related to social and cultural issues. These controversies attracted attention from various activist groups, consumers, and political figures, and contributed to periods of negative publicity for the retailer.

Industry publication Modern Retail noted in mid-2025 that Target had endured "a dismal few quarters," and that the retail industry was awaiting a change in leadership at the company.

In October 2025, an activist investor group filed a shareholder resolution calling for an independent board chair at Target, opposing Cornell's planned transition to the executive chairman role. The investors argued that the chairman position should not be held by the departing CEO and instead called for independent oversight of the board.

Departure and Succession

On August 20, 2025, Target announced that Cornell would step down as CEO effective February 1, 2026. Michael Fiddelke, who was serving as Target's chief operating officer, was named as his successor. Fiddelke, described by Yahoo Finance as "homegrown talent," had spent his entire career at Target, marking a return to the company's historical practice of promoting from within.

According to Target's corporate announcement, Cornell would remain with the company as executive chairman of the board of directors following the CEO transition. Retail Dive noted that Cornell had "shaped the mass retailer's reputation and performance for over a decade."

Other Board and Industry Roles

Beyond his role at Target, Cornell has held several board and leadership positions in the retail industry and nonprofit sector. In 2015, he joined the board of directors of Yum! Brands, the parent company of Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut. He eventually became non-executive chairman of Yum! Brands' board.

Cornell served as chairman of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), a trade association representing major retail companies in the United States. He also served on the board of directors of Polaris Industries.

In the nonprofit sector, Cornell served on the board of directors of Catalyst, an organization focused on expanding opportunities for women in business. He also held a leadership role with the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), a Smithsonian Institution museum in Washington, D.C.

Personal Life

Brian Cornell is married to Martha Cornell. The couple have two children. Cornell maintained a relatively low personal profile during his years as Target's CEO, though he became more publicly visible on social and corporate responsibility issues during the latter part of his tenure. In 2021, he spoke publicly about the impact of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis—the city where Target is headquartered—saying the event pushed him to take more action on issues of racial equity.

Cornell has also been involved with health-related causes in the communities where he has lived and worked.

Recognition

Cornell received several notable honors and awards during his career, particularly during his time leading Target. In December 2019, CNN Business named him "CEO of the Year," citing the strong performance of Target's stock and the success of the company's strategic investments in stores and digital fulfillment.

In 2022, RIS News named Cornell "Visionary of the Year" for his leadership in transforming Target's retail operations.

Fortune magazine included Cornell in its coverage of influential chief executives through its CEO Initiative program.

Legacy

Brian Cornell's legacy at Target is viewed as multifaceted. Axios, in a January 2026 assessment of his tenure, described his record as "mixed," acknowledging the significant transformation he led while also noting the challenges that marked the latter years of his leadership. On one hand, Cornell is credited with modernizing Target's physical stores, building industry-leading same-day fulfillment capabilities, and developing a portfolio of private-label brands that helped distinguish Target from its competitors. The investments he championed in store renovations and digital services positioned Target to capitalize on shifting consumer behaviors, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

On the other hand, the post-pandemic period brought persistent headwinds, including excess inventory challenges, declining comparable sales in key quarters, and public controversies that affected the company's brand perception among some consumer segments. The activist investor challenge to his planned executive chairman role reflected ongoing questions about corporate governance at Target as it entered its post-Cornell era.

Cornell's status as the first outside CEO in Target's history and his more than decade-long tenure made him a defining figure in the company's modern era. His successor, Michael Fiddelke, inherited both the infrastructure Cornell built and the challenges that remained unresolved at the time of the leadership transition. Retail Dive characterized Cornell as an executive who "shaped the mass retailer's reputation and performance for over a decade," underscoring the extent to which Target's identity during the mid-2010s through the mid-2020s was closely associated with his leadership.