🠈 Gap, Inc. 🠊
The Gap
Gap, Inc. is a San Francisco based clothing chain with over 3500 stores world wide. The primary brands in the company's family are : Banana Republic, Old Navy Gap, Athleta, Hill City and Intermix. The company trades on the NYSE with the symbol: GPS.
The company was founded in 1969 by Don Fisher who was a real estate developer and friend of Walter Haas Jr. who was the president of Levi Strauss & Co.. The company expanded as a mall store during the aggressive roll out of malls in the 1970s.
The Company Man video about the store says the name "The Gap" referred to the generation gap between the Baby Boomers and the people who won WWII.
Corporate History
Since Gap rents space in malls, they have not engaged in many complex mergers and acquisitions as is common with brick and mortar stores. They have created several new brands. Their actual growth is largely organic. The most interesting corporate event was their 2019 spin off of Old Navy ... which wasn't complete at the time of this review.
- 1969: Company founded in San Francisco.
- 1983: Gap acquired Banana Republic.
- 1978: Mel and Patricia Ziegler opened the Banana Republic Travel & Safari Clothing Company in Mill Valley, Ca.
- Gap shortened the name and changed the focus to general upscale merchandise.
- 1994: Gap launched Old Navy as a discount store with flare.
- 2002: Gap fired its CEO Max Drexler who then went on to J. Crew.
- 2005: Gap launched Forth & Towne to target women 35 years and older.
- 2006: Gap launched Pepperlime chain of stores selling shoes.
- 2015: Gap closed the line.
- 2009: Gap launched the Athleta stores carrying active wear for women.
- 2012: Gap acquired Intermix for $130 million.
- 1993: Khajak Keledjian founded Intermix.
- 2018: Gap launched Hill City which sells athletic clothing.
- 2019: Gap acquired the Janie & Jack brand from bankrupt Gymboree.
- 2019: Gap announced plans to spin off Old Navy. Gap temporarily had the name NewCo.
References:
- Wikipedia - Gap Inc (Drawn 9/4/2019)
Directory Listings:
- Phoenix Color - Apparel: Gap, Inc.
- Phoenix Color - Apparel: Banana Republic
- Pima County - Apparel: Gap, Inc.
- Pima County - Apparel: Banana Republic
- Colorado Springs Color - Clothing Stores: Banana Republic
- Denver Color - Apparel: Gap, Inc.
- Denver Color - Apparel: Banana Republic
- Fort Collins Color - Apparel: Banana Republic
- Park City, Utah - Clothes: Gap, Inc.
- Park City, Utah - Clothes: Banana Republic
- Provo Utah - Apparel: Gap, Inc.
- Provo Utah - Apparel: Banana Republic
- Saint George - Apparel: Gap, Inc.
- Salt Lake Sites - Apparel: Gap, Inc.
- Salt Lake Sites - Apparel: Banana Republic