Adam Normand was pleased when Target put up an $8,000 sponsorship for the student business competition he was organizing.

Target had given the Canadian Association of Business Students some money before to sponsor its central case competition, a venue for students to put their business skills to the test and make valuable connections with more established people in their fields.

So Normand, who manages CABS from Montreal, was disappointed when Target’s $8,000 cheque bounced, even if he wasn’t entirely surprised.

After all, organizers had tried to cash it on Jan. 15 — the same day the news broke that Target was pulling out of Canada.

"Their accounts were frozen," Normand said.

He also had to pay a $5 penalty for the bounced cheque.

Normand said the lost sponsorship money meant a lot of last-minute scrambling to shed expenses from the budget for the case competition, which is underway in Toronto.

He said the loss would mean less money for audiovisuals and online streaming, as well as less money for food, but that the conference would go on as scheduled.

Target would not answer CBC Daybreak’s questions about the failed attempt at sponsorship.