Former Target chief merchant joins consulting firm

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- Former Target executive Kathryn Tesija has joined CPG/retail consulting firm Simpactful as a senior adviser and consultant.

Tesija spent 30 years at Target Corp., most recently as chief merchandising and supply chain officer. She will be a senior adviser and consultant for Simpactful, based in Minneapolis. 

“Kathee’s tremendous experience, along with our team of other senior leaders from companies like Walmart, P&G, Acosta, General Mills, Safeway and beyond, enables Simpactful to bring our clients real-world solutions that enable them to deliver best-in-class sales and profit growth, plus organizational productivity. We are very excited and fortunate to have Kathee join our team," said Tom O’Brien, chairman at Simpactful.

The firm says Tesija will help empower client companies of all sizes to improve top and bottom line results via strategic guidance, direction on sales and marketing plans, and strong operational/in-store expertise.

During 30 years at Target, Tesija was among the key executives who helped grow Target into a $73 billion company. During her tenure, she helped build Target from 226 to 1,800 retail stores while at the same time navigating significant disruption — as shopping forever changed from an in-store only to a seamless, online and on-demand experience. Tesija oversaw all functions of product design and development, sourcing, merchandising, presentation, inventory management, operations and global supply chain for Target.com and nearly 1,800 retail stores.  

Tesija’s move to Simpactful follows other high-profile additions, including Taylor Smith of Walmart and Brian Baldwin of Acosta Sales and Marketing, among others.