A Target shopper recently claimed that 7 a.m. was the best time to shop in the store because it was a low-traffic hour. However, some users said that it was actually a traffic-free hour as their local stores don't open until 8am
Mikaela Hess (@mikaelayhess), the shopper, filmed her video in the dentist aisle of her local Target. “If you’ve never been to Target at 7 a.m., this is the sign for you,” Hess said.
“I speak quietly because there are about a million employees around me, but I'm maybe one in 10 customers here,” she added. “This is by far the best time to come to Target if you need to get your errands done quickly and easily.”
Hess sharpened her strategy in the accompanying video caption. “The early bird catches the worm,” she wrote. As of Sunday evening, her video had more than 248,000 views.
In the comments, some viewers said they agreed with Hess' sentiments.
“Yeah, except it's so weird that it's so quiet and the staff are EVERYWHERE,” one user wrote.
“It's best to go super early or super late when there's no one there lol,” said a second.
“I went to Target at 8 a.m. on a Saturday morning when they opened. It was just me and it was great,” agreed a third user.
However, other viewers said their local Target doesn't open quite as early.
“The mines open at 10am,” said one user.
“Okay, but my destination doesn’t open until 8 p.m.?!” another exclaimed.
And some shoppers said they feared entering too early would frustrate store employees.
@mikaelayhess Early Bird catches the worm 🎯 #target #targetrun #errands #morningroutine #morningvlog #earlymorning #holidayshopping #relatable ♬ Original sound – MIKAELA HESS
“However, I feel like the staff hate me because they are trying to build up inventory,” one viewer shared.
At least one Target employee confirmed this fact. “I'm a target employee who I don't like when guests come so early,” they wrote.
Hess certainly isn't the only content creator sharing Target shopping hacks. Recently, a former employee revealed secrets she learned at work. And another customer showed users how to use the Target app to price match.
The Daily Dot reached out to Hess via email for comment.
*First published: December 25, 2023, 6:00 p.m. CST
Nina Hernandez
Nina Hernandez is an author, journalist, music critic and cultural commentator based in Austin, Texas.
