HomeGoods Will Finally Launch E-Commerce in 2021

In the spirit of Ross Geller, tight circumstances are forcing a TJX retailer to pivot. HomeGoods, previously IRL-only, will launch an online storefront in 2021.

About the swerve...TJX CEO Ernie Herrman had said in May that his brands wouldn’t use e-comm as a “major leveraging point” during pandemic store closures. But sales have fallen without an online channel this year—requiring a second look at the retailer’s anti-internet policy.

But HomeGoods stores aren’t going anywhere. TJX said any online offering “complements and encourages” treasure hunts at its brick and mortar locations.

Forgetting Marshalls? Not exactly. While other TJX retailers have e-comm sites, it's unlikely that TJX’s apparel-focused arms will join HomeGoods in a robust online push.

• For one thing, home furnishing and decor sales have outpaced apparel, justifying the investment in a new channel.
• For another, apparel brands that sell their wares to TJX prefer to keep their partnerships analog—so the discounts don’t spread online and cheapen their image.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly implied that TJX's apparel retailers are not e-commerce enabled. T.J.Maxx and Marshalls have e-commerce storefronts.