Gap Inc. clearly is hoping that Dickson, who has been on Gap’s board since November, can bring some of his Barbie magic to the struggling retailer. He was president and chief operating officer at Mattel and as such was instrumental in strategizing the craze around the 50th anniversary of Barbie and the blockbuster “Barbie” movie released in theaters last week.
The last true merchant running Gap was Millard “Mickey” Drexler, who masterminded the growth of Gap into a household name brand, known worldwide. Drexler led Gap through most of its best years, when it defined American casual style with an extra touch, and was something unique. There was always a fun aspect to it.
“You definitely need leadership that is product-savvy, understands trend, and it’s also critical to be extremely operationally savvy and strategic given Gap Inc.’s different channels,” said another financial source, who requested anonymity. “Sonia Syngal did bring rigor and discipline, but you need someone that’s extremely product savvy and also with P&L rigor. She skewed more on the P&L [profit and loss] side.
“The Gap is still in my opinion a great brand, but it hasn’t effectively taken advantage of its history. It’s been a big denim company. They should be even more dominant in denim,” said a former retail CEO, who asked not to be named. “Figure out how to maximize it. There should be specialty tops that go with black jeans. Jeans with sparkle.
Old Navy, he added, for the price has been offering decent quality clothes that are on trend but not leading edge. “People get it. But Old Navy really hasn’t been reinvented at all. The stores look old. They need more updating. There’s a very ’90s feel.”