In the early 90s, the New York Times described the Gap thusly: "as ubiquitous as McDonald's, as centrally managed as the former Soviet Union and as American as Mickey Mouse." That's fun.
In my mind, the Gap was where the cool kids shopped for all manner of denim (and later, somewhat regrettably, for khaki capris. RIP, 1998 fashion). It won over moms, celebrities and countless suburban kids who were neither edgy enough to pull off the grunge look nor wealthy enough for the preppy-chic aesthetic.
It was vanilla, and made vanilla desirable ... for a time. These days, the brand is clinging to life.
On Monday, the company announced CEO Sonia Syngal would step down after less than three years. She will be replaced by an interim CEO while the company searches for a permanent leader. Sales at the Gap and its sister brands Old Navy and Banana Republic have slumped for years, my colleague Nathaniel Meyersohn writes.
What the heck happened?
This brand was once so powerful it single-handedly made unironic swing dancing a Thing. Now, not even a Yeezy partnership can meaningfully lift it from obscurity.
Part of the problem, Nathaniel writes, is that the Gap's fortunes have largely been tied to those of malls — great news in the '90s, but awful news now. (True story: My mom and I used to drive over an hour to a mall in Kansas City simply because it had a Gap that our smaller local mall lacked).
By 2024, the brand plans to close 30% of its Gap and Banana Republic stores in North America — mostly in malls.
Then came the fast-fashion competition: H&M and Zara lured shoppers away. Direct-to-consumer brands online have also chipped away at the Gap's clientele.
Its revival plans "have been piecemeal rather than part of a coherent grand plan of reinvigoration," said Neil Saunders, an analyst at GlobalData Retail, in a note to clients Monday.
Time for a comeback?
The Gap's not without hope, but its near future hinges on getting a new leader in place and leaning into the successes of its Old Navy and Athleta brands, which, combined, will represent about 70% of Gap's total sales by 2023, the company says.
"The Gap's failure is all about its lack of leadership," said Mark Cohen, the director of retail studies at Columbia University's business school. "They had a brilliant period of growth and popularity, which they frittered away."
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