Gap was a high street megastar in the 90s, with British shoppers lining up to buy into its American casual wear dream of logoed hoodies and jeans.
These days the mighty US retailer is in retreat, with the group confirming this week that a quarter of its remaining UK stores will close next month, leaving about 50, amid a review of its European operation.
Like other heritage brands built on large store empires at home and abroad, Gap has struggled to stay relevant as powerful new players, such as Zara, H&M and Uniqlo moved in and sales shifted online.
But it has not thrown in the towel yet. It has instead enlisted a real-life megastar in the shape of Kanye West, to see if he can do for its clothing and finances what he has done for Adidas, where his Yeezy shoe line achieved sales of almost $1.7bn (£1.2bn) last year.
The UK closures are yet another blow for the ailing high street – more may follow as the company considers switching to a franchise model – although not a surprise, given European sales tumbled almost 40% in the year to January 2021. It recently shut one of its two…
