‘I’m gonna go commando now’

A Target shopper in the market for some new underwear was left baffled and instead insisted on going “commando” after he found the store’s boxer briefs were locked behind a glass security door.

“How f–cked up as a society are we now that even the underwear is behind a glass box,” TikToker Mardom0 said in a video he shot inside one of the retail giant’s locations.

“Like, I’m just trying to get a pair of briefs or boxer briefs. Can’t even do that these days without having someone press a button for you. Well, sign off,” he said in the clip, posted in November with the text “Guess I’m gonna go commando now.”

Target has been locking up some of its most basic items — including deodorant, shampoo, toothpaste and even underwear —  in an attempt to curb surging thefts at its stores.

At a Target in White Plains, New York, rows of “Pair of Thieves” underpants were ironically seen locked behind security cases alongside other brands, Fox Business reported last year.

In September, the National Retail Federation [NRF] released a report that found underwear and other types of clothing were often targeted by organized groups. Other popular items crooks sought were handbags, cell phone accessories, designer shoes and cosmetics, the report found.

Target closed nine stories nationwide in 2023, blaming the decisions on retail theft and crime after “heavily” investing in measures to prevent theft, according to Fox Business.

The company has said that the measures include locking cases, adding more security staff and training employees on how to stop thefts.

Target CEO Brian Cornell told CNBC that he’s received positive feedback from customers about locking items up.

“Actually, what we hear from the guests is a big ‘thank you,’ because we are in stock with the brands that they need when they’re shopping in our stores,” he told the outlet.

“And because we’ve invested in team member labor in those aisles and make sure we’re there to greet that guest, open up those cases, and provide them the items they’re looking for.”

At an earnings call in August, Cornell told investors that it had expected to shrink this year but remains “well above the sustainable level where we expect to operate over time,” according to Fox Business.