PhD Candidate
Johnathan entered the program in 2016 and studies modern American business, environmental, and political history with Sarah Phillips. His dissertation, “Big-Box Nation: Target and the Making of the Retail World,” examines how big-box stores developed to become a common feature of the American landscape during the late twentieth century by focusing on Target Stores. The expansion of national big-box store chains like Target coincided with a growing environmental awareness among Americans and a surge in environmental regulations, both of which retailers constantly mitigated. Target emerged as an industry leader to these challenges, as it voiced opposition to reform at Congressional hearings, initiated public-private partnerships with the federal government, and launched an aggressive campaign to promote a positive environmental image of the company. While other industries faced the brunt of these regulations, retail largely escaped significant reforms despite its significant environmental impacts across the globe.