Christina Hennington
Executive Vice President and Chief Growth Officer at Target
Thanks, Brian. And good morning, everyone. Our guest is at the forefront of every decision we make. By listening intently to them, anticipating their wants and needs, and building our strategy around them, we can drive deeper engagement, trust, and a stronger preference for Target over time. We built our same-day capabilities with that guest-first focus.
And as we've shared before, when guests try services like Drive Up or Shipt for the first time, their overall spending increases, including an increase in conventional store shopping. In other words, digital engagement drives more engagement in our stores, providing us with more and more opportunities to surprise, delight, and inspire them. This is one example of many showing how growth today creates a platform for additional growth in the future. And, of course, we wouldn't be where we are today without the best team in retail. So I want to take a moment and thank our entire team for delivering superior performance in a continued volatile environment even as they face ongoing challenges presented by the Delta variant, product cost inflation, supply chain bottlenecks, and more.
Target's second-quarter performance also demonstrates the strength and durability of our business model. Our unique multi-category assortment offers the right balance of what our guests want and need even as they change, sometimes rapidly. As a result, despite record-setting growth last year, all five of our core merchandising categories grew again this year, proving that there's still plenty of runway ahead.
Second-quarter results were strongest in apparel, which delivered mid-teens growth, on top of low double-digit growth last year. Within apparel, swim, kids, and young contemporary, all delivered comps in the low 20% range. Food and beverage delivered low double-digit growth in the second quarter. Performance was led by our bakery, cafe, and deli businesses, which grew more than 50% as these departments were closed during part of the second quarter last year. We also saw double-digit growth in our fresh categories, benefiting from an expansion in the number of items available for Drive Up. In fact, nearly half of this year's growth in our products business has been driven by the growth in Drive Up orders. The Essentials and Beauty category delivered high single-digit growth this quarter.
Within Essentials, baby care grew by more than 20% and we saw mid to high teens growth in both pets and healthcare. Beauty continued to gain market share on comp growth in the high single-digit range, in advance of this month's roll-out of our in-store partnership with Ulta Beauty. Hardlines delivered mid-single-digit growth this quarter, on top of more than 40% growth a year ago.
We continue to benefit from strong momentum in toys, which grew in the low 20% range. Sporting goods was also a standout with growth in the high teens. As expected, electronics experienced a moderate comp decline in the mid-single-digit range as it comped over last year's growth of more than 70% during a period when some competitors were closed. Importantly, over the last two years, both Hardlines Electronics have delivered strong growth and market share gains.
And finally, in Home, following comp growth of more than 30% last year, we saw a low single-digit increase in the second quarter. Within Home, we've seen moderating trends in categories like kitchen, storage, and decor, as they comped over outsized growth last year. At the same time, given our guests' increasing focus on gathering and celebrating holidays and family milestones, we've seen an acceleration in our seasonal and stationery categories, providing another example of the power of our broad multi-category model. And beyond individual categories our diverse collection of owned brands continues to grow and provide differentiation across our assortment.
In the second quarter, owned brand sales outpaced the Company with growth in the mid-teens. And in food and beverage, where we're seeing tremendous growth in Good & Gather and encouraging results in our new brand, Favorite Day, we saw an increase in owned brand penetration of about 70 basis points compared with last year.
As we look ahead, despite uncertainties around the Delta variant and rising COVID cases, consumers have healthy balance sheets and remain eager to find safe ways to connect with their loved ones and find some sense of normalcy. We'll continue to safely meet their needs and add the much-needed joy. First on that list is this month's launch of Ulta Beauty at Target, the next chapter in Target's already strong beauty story. The shared values and cultures between our businesses and our collective desire to inspire and elevate the shopping experience make this long-term partnership a major win for both companies and our guests. And like our guests, we are incredibly excited to see this new concept come to life following months of anticipation. But our guests aren't just excited for the glow-up to their beauty game [Phonetic], they're also looking for affordable options to refresh their wardrobe, as they cautiously plan for more in-person interactions this fall.
So it's perfect timing that this September, Target is partnering with four dynamic and highly-regarded designers: Nili Lotan, Rachel Comey, Sandy Liang, and Victor Glemaud, to create a limited-time, size-inclusive apparel collection of modern and classic wardrobe staples. And our partnerships go well beyond Apparel and Beauty. In Home, we've enlisted the talents of Justina Blakeney, Jungalow founder, and longtime partner, to bring Jungalow's cozy, wild, and free vibe into our Opalhouse line, making it the perfect addition to our eclectic Home brand.
And for our little guests, our newest design partnership is sure to inspire their imagination and help them to create some great new looks. Christian Robinson for Target, a full of wonder creation of the beloved artist, illustrator, and children's book author, is a limited-edition collection that includes home goods, apparel, and books for kids and babies. And last, not least, for the furrier family members in your household, we've just launched Kindful, our new pet food owned brand, focusing on healthy, sustainable, and affordable food options for our beloved four-legged friends. Beyond partnerships and product launches, our guests are telling us they're hungry to celebrate key holidays, life moments and everyday occasions with their loved ones, having missed out on so many of them over the last 18 months. So even as they're mindful of the ongoing risks, our guests are carefully balancing caution with optimism and focusing on finding safe and affordable ways to celebrate.
Already in progress, the back-to-school and back-to-college seasons are off to a great start. Regardless of whether back-to-school will be in person or hybrid, Target has everything you need to be successful in any learning environment. Similarly, as college freshmen look to move onto campus for the first time, our merchandising and inventory plans account for the fact that many sophomores find themselves in that same position, having attended their first year of college in a completely virtual environment.
Given the stresses that come with the start of school, Target has focused on making things as easy as possible for families with School List Assist. This feature, online and in the Target app, allows users to easily find their school-specific supply list and either shop by item or add the whole list with a click of a button. And like we did for a holiday last year, our back-to-school offers will be spread throughout the entire season, providing both value and a safe shopping experience for our guests. This reflects our ongoing focus on providing value that goes far beyond price. It's about affordability and accessibility, all season long. And on that topic of providing value, we're rolling out new functionality in the Target app, based on hearing from our guests that the fear of missing out on a deal is real. Something is effectually known as Promo FOMO. With this update, when guests add items to their cart, the app will automatically show them all the applicable Target Circle offers, before checking out, reassuring them that they won't miss out on a great deal.
Looking ahead, we will soon be trading in shorts and T-shirts for cozy sweaters and denim as we usher in the fall. And for Halloween, no matter how you plan to celebrate, Target has a few tricks and no shortage of treats up our sleeve. We'll continue to focus on value and inspiration with affordable and exciting costumes, including a broader than ever array of adaptive size-inclusive and gender-neutral options. And of course, we'll have all the sweet treats for self-indulgence and sharing with others, including great new offerings from our Hyde & EEK! and Favorite Day owned brands.
Beyond our near-term plans, what energizes me the most is our focus on creating a more equitable, sustainable, and inclusive world. This is why I'm so proud of our recently announced sustainability strategy, Target Forward, which is a comprehensive vision that touches every aspect of our business in support of people and the planet.
You've heard me talk about my role on Target's REACH committee, which was formed with the goal of achieving lasting, systemic change for our black guests, team members, and communities, serving as a perfect extension of the broader Target Forward strategy. The recruitment and retention of more diverse team members, more products from diverse suppliers, and new direction for our philanthropic efforts in communities of color and more equity for all, these are unwavering commitments in support of our goals. While there's much more to accomplish, I'm pleased with the progress we've already made. One example is our commitment to increasing black representation across our Company by 20% by the year 2023. To date, we've seen progress at all salaried levels, most notably in a nearly 25% increase among our Company officers.
So while it's incredibly rewarding to see how well our business is performing, I'm most proud of our commitment to investing in the long-term health of our team, our communities, and the planet. Our Company purpose focus on sustainability and on creating a more equitable and inclusive world. These are not a collection of separate initiatives tacked onto our core business. Rather, they are the bedrock of who we are and how we make decisions. While their benefit may be hard to quantify in a spreadsheet, I strongly believe that they are the foundation of how we'll grow our business, sustain our communities, and move forward together over time.
With that, I will turn the call over to John.
