Target may not be a store you think of when looking to places to buy anime or manga, but at times, you may get the best deal at the home of Bullseye the dog.
Overview
Target is one of the U.S.’s leading retailers with about 1,800 stores. Much like rival Walmart, it has a couple different versions of its stores. Most Target stores have a mix of departments like clothing, toys, household, media, and a grocery section. Super Target stores have a much larger food department featuring items like fresh fruits and veggies. Shopping Target.com is also an option to search through an expanded of selection goods. Like Amazon and Walmart, Target has opened their online marketplace to allow third-party sellers.
Merchandise Selection
Target carries a mixture of name brand products and their own personal brands. Target is also pretty aggressive about getting exclusives in certain departments (Disney movies, board games, limited run clothing), so that attracts a lot of customers.
Like other chains, Target is stocking more geek merchandise in its brick-and-mortar locations. I’ve seen items like anime T-shirts, Blu-rays, posters, and figures.
Online has more of course, including a large selection of manga. Unfortunately, their offerings can be very hit-or-miss. They may not carry all volumes in a series; Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju, for example, has seven of its ten volumes available for purchase on Target.com. Some series may have all 10, others maybe 3. It’s weird. They do seem to be getting better at making them all available, but you never know before you search. I’ve found it easier to search for manga by author names.
Either way, for manga or anime, Target does not have actual manga or anime categories, so you just can’t browse and see what looks good to you like at other online retailers.
Pricing
Unlike Walmart, Target has clearly defined sales every week. Besides temporarily marking down merchandise, Target also often does category or store coupon promotions like $5 gift card when you buy $15 worth of drinks or $25 off $100 in toys. These coupons are usually available in the Target ad, app, by texting Target’s number, or applied automatically online. Store cashiers will often tape these generic barcodes to their register, so if you didn’t know or just forgot, they’ll scan it for you. Most of these offers pop up one to three times a year.
Target also has digital coupons and special offers. Coupons may be from Target or a manufacturer. Cartwheel offers are Target discounts that offer a percent-off discount, like 25% off a certain brand of soda. These must be loaded online or from the Target app, and the cashier must be able to scan your barcode, unlike the generic multi-use coupons. Cartwheel offers can be combined with coupons (both Target and manufacturer). While coupons are usually similar to the coupons in the Sunday newspaper, Cartwheel offers can cover a range of products from high-end electronics to cheap snacks. Cartwheel offers can only be applied online if you are picking up your order in the store.
Both in-store and online have clearance items, but the selection and markdowns may vary by store. But if you see something with a yellow sticker on it, it may fall to 70% off. Anything unsold is salvaged and sold by the palletload to resellers and liquidators. Goodwill often buys these items, so check your local store to see if it has a lot of clearance Target merchandise.
For anime and manga, like their selection, prices can vary widely. Some items I’ve seen undercut any of the major retailers or stores like Right Stuf Anime; other times, Target is at or near full MSRP. Releases from the same series can be priced very differently. You just have to look. Target often lists items very early (almost a year in advance in some cases), so you can lock down a price if you find something at a good price.
Target is one of the few retailers that prorates items in a bogo or dollar-off situations. So if you bought three books for $9.99 during a buy two get a third free sale and then realize you already own one of them, you can cancel that book without ruining the order. You will just pay $6.66 each for the other two ($9.99 x 2 / 3). It’s not something to take advantage of, but it is nice if something arrives broken, it’s a gift that you already have, etc. Be aware this may bring up shipping and handling charges if you were eligible for free shipping.
Price Matching
Target and Target.com do pricematch other retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop, and Walmart, but in store you may be required to show a printed version of the ad. Target will also pricematch Target.com if there’s a price difference between the two. However, you cannot stack a Target coupon or Cartwheel with a pricematch. Some people do get lucky, but this is explicitly against Target’s official policy. Pricematching is also unavailable during the Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday weekend.
Target.com’s prices will often mirror those of Amazon or Walmart, so the site may essentially pricematch automatically. That often means some nice savings when combined with other Target promotions. Just keep an eye out to see if Target’s algorithm will drop the price to keep them in line with its rivals.
RedCard
Their RedCard comes in two forms: a debit card that only works at Target and a credit card that works anywhere. Using either gets you free shipping online. You will also get 5% off your purchase at Target by using your RedCard, and they often offer special promotions on your RedCard anniversary and throughout the year.
Shipping & Payments
Shipping is free on orders $35+, but during the holiday season, it has been free shipping on all items. You can also get free shipping everyday with RedCard, or choose ship-to-store or 2-hour store pickup if available. So if you are worried about shipping charges in case you cancel or return part of your order, these options are available.
Items from third-party sellers follow same shipping and return rules as Target’s. (See below for more information.)
Online, they accept most major credit and debit cards as well as PayPal. PayPal, however, is not accepted if you are buying items from third-party sellers. Stores accept most standard methods of payment as well as some mobile payments like Apple Pay.
Exchanges & Returns
Target’s return policy is 90 days on most items, 120 days with RedCard. There are exceptions like open media is exchange only and 14-15 days for premium electronics. Online purchases can be returned to the store or online, and return shipping is usually free.
Final Thoughts
For animanga fans, I’ve found the best deals to be the aforementioned buy two get a third free on books or movies and the annual Cyber Monday 15% off sitewide. BOGO deals apply to preorders, so it’s a nice way to get discounts on items that haven’t been released yet and mix-and-match with what’s already out there. When Barnes & Noble does their Manga Mania sale, they usually only have a select amount of preorders included.
If you have a RedCard, that 5% off can often balance out or minimize your taxes on your purchase. Target also usually has a day (Cyber Monday I think?) where Target gift cards are 5% off. So if you don’t have a RedCard, you can buy some to get that same savings on your upcoming Target purchases.
Otherwise, on an average day, most of Target’s prices will likely to be similar to other stores. So you can just choose which store is the best for you. Their animanga merchandise selection may not be the largest, but you may be able to rack up the savings thanks to some other Target promotions that will balance out paying at or near list price.