It's no secret that Gap has had some trouble lately. That's not news to anyone. And it's main locations—in malls, obviously—are suffering more than ever. With the entire concept of the mall set to more or less completely die over next 15 years, how will retailers, like Gap, who need malls to survive, make adjustments to their businesses? Well, Fast Company got the inside look at what's going on at Gap to get them back in the saddle. The man behind the plan is Art Peck, Gap's recently named CEO.
Gap experienced a major boon during the mall era and was one of the most dominant clothing brands for years after its founding in 1969. Because of that success, it was slow to evolve and move into the space that has become populated with the Uniqlos, H&Ms and Zaras of the world. The result? Gap's sales have dropped basically every year since 2006. Shit is BLEAK. Since Gap has effectively missed out on the current generation of shoppers, it's plan is to completely leapfrog ahead of everyone else to the next generation with a mobile-first approach that puts physical stores firmly on the back burner.
Part of Peck's approach is to also capitalize on trends a bit more. While Gap is known for having equally swagless and timeless staples, that can't provide enough business on their own. Peck's past work at Gap in a non-CEO role was on a "colored denim project" that had great results. In order to connect with customers more, it needs to have product that speaks to similar sartorial movements, so expect some distressed and destroyed denim on racks near you. This move towards trends also means Gap will have to jump on quicker production cycles to match the abilities of Zara to churn out on-trend stuff in around three months rather than Gap's current 10 month cycle, which can feel like a lifetime in retail. Granted, all of this just scratches the surface. How these changes will look when they reach the consumer, we'll have to wait and see, but it looks like Gap is cooking up something in the kitchen to get back into your closets.
