It has been six months since Rebekka Bay, who made her name designing offbeat womenswear classics for COS, owned by H&M, took over as creative director for Gap.
And in the flailing fashion retailer's new fall 2013 lookbook, the 42-year-old's sophisticated influence is firmly felt.
While Ms Bays Gap designs wont land in stores until spring 2014, the new sleek, pared-down, and expertly-layered looks show her creative direction finally singling Gap down to one vision - mirroring the aesthetic strategies of J. Crew's reigning fashion force, Jenna Lyons.
Gap, one of the great hot-to-not stories of American retailing, has been struggling in a stalemate revival for years. Part of the problem has been inconsistent design, where too many visions created unappealing fashion, and punished sales.
Ms Bay's predecessor, Gap's former creative director Patrick Robinson, who was fired in May 2011 after initially being hailed as Gap's 'saviour', came up against such problems.
A former Gap employee who worked with Mr Robinson told the New York Times: 'One season, executives were asked to focus on womens career wear, only to be told the next season to get back to Gaps core, denim.
'Then its, "Dont focus on the denim business; focus on tops."'
It seemed Gap's merchants, who were ordering and adjusting the products, were ruining Mr Robinson's vision.
They ordered: chase Expresss trendy, club-ready market, but then go after Macys diverse designs. And most recently, it appears the retailer has been taking a cue from J.Crews book.
WhichGap's former CEO, and current J. Crew CEO, Mickey Drexler, might not be thrilled about, but it seems to be a move in the right direction. (dailymail.co.uk, images from refinery29)
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And in the flailing fashion retailer's new fall 2013 lookbook, the 42-year-old's sophisticated influence is firmly felt.
While Ms Bays Gap designs wont land in stores until spring 2014, the new sleek, pared-down, and expertly-layered looks show her creative direction finally singling Gap down to one vision - mirroring the aesthetic strategies of J. Crew's reigning fashion force, Jenna Lyons.
Gap, one of the great hot-to-not stories of American retailing, has been struggling in a stalemate revival for years. Part of the problem has been inconsistent design, where too many visions created unappealing fashion, and punished sales.
Ms Bay's predecessor, Gap's former creative director Patrick Robinson, who was fired in May 2011 after initially being hailed as Gap's 'saviour', came up against such problems.
A former Gap employee who worked with Mr Robinson told the New York Times: 'One season, executives were asked to focus on womens career wear, only to be told the next season to get back to Gaps core, denim.
'Then its, "Dont focus on the denim business; focus on tops."'
It seemed Gap's merchants, who were ordering and adjusting the products, were ruining Mr Robinson's vision.
They ordered: chase Expresss trendy, club-ready market, but then go after Macys diverse designs. And most recently, it appears the retailer has been taking a cue from J.Crews book.
WhichGap's former CEO, and current J. Crew CEO, Mickey Drexler, might not be thrilled about, but it seems to be a move in the right direction. (dailymail.co.uk, images from refinery29)
