Gap namesake brand posts 10% same-store sales gain, shares jump 15%

Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Athleta post declining same-store sales

Same-store sales at the namesake Gap brand rose 10% in the most recent quarter, the 11th consecutive quarterly gain at the banner under Dickson, who became CEO of Gap Inc. in August 2023. Shares rose 15% to $23.95 in Friday morning trading, the biggest one-day jump in more than a year, after the company beat analyst earnings estimates and raised its full-year earnings guidance slightly. Overall sales at the parent company slipped 2% to $3.65 billion from $3.73 billion a year earlier.

“When great product is paired with compelling storytelling and disciplined execution, it creates a powerful flywheel of customer engagement and brand momentum,” Dickson told analysts on Thursday after the company reported financial results.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Gap brand has paired that approach with celebrity partnerships including Victoria Beckham and Hailey Bieber, and with designs by Zac Posen, the company’s creative director, which have appeared at the Met Gala, the Oscars and other red-carpet events in recent years.

At Old Navy, the company’s largest division by sales, same-store sales fell 4% in the quarter. Dickson said the brand had missed the mark in key summer categories such as dresses, shorts and bathing suits, and that its marketing failed to drive enough business.

“We made some assortment and pricing decisions that impacted our value equation,” Dickson said, adding that the team had seen improvements in August.

Gap Inc. also shook up Old Navy’s leadership. Haio Barbeito, Old Navy’s president and CEO, will move into an advisory role as of Nov. 2. Michael Francis, who joined Old Navy in 2026 as chief customer officer and head of marketing shared services, will replace him.

Banana Republic same-store sales fell 2% in the quarter. Athleta same-store sales dropped 12% as the athletic-apparel brand lost ground to newer rivals, according to the Journal.

Under former CEO Mickey Drexler, Gap advertised khakis in television commercials that showed models dancing to swing music and ran campaigns featuring celebrities including Madonna, Spike Lee and Sharon Stone wearing the company’s classic T-shirts and denim, the Journal reported. Sales slumped in the early 2000s and Drexler was forced out. According to the Journal, subsequent chief executives “weren’t able to reignite the magic” before Dickson’s appointment.