Gap-owned brand Athleta is heading into the new year with a more refined product and event strategy.
Last week, the brand kicked off the first stage of its new experiential fitness series “Move with Athleta” in New York City. It will bring the activation — which includes private fitness classes for influencers, product giveaways and live music for the public, all in different locations — to cities including Los Angeles, Boston and Miami throughout 2024. In addition, every month throughout 2024, the brand will hold a limited-edition product drop on its website and in its most popular stores. The first drop will happen this December and will include about four to six styles of apparel, CEO Chris Blakeslee told Modern Retail.
It’s been a challenging year for Athleta, which reported its fourth consecutive drop in quarterly year-over-year sales on Thursday. Athleta’s net sales for the period ending Oct. 28 totaled $279 million, down 18% from the same time a year ago, while its comparable sales were down 19%. In a press release, Gap Inc. said the Athleta team is working to “reengage its core consumer through better product and right marketing.” As part of this effort, Athleta — which more than 230 throughout the U.S. — is amping up activations, using more of a scarcity model to generate buzz and rolling out new products for training and running.
Source: Modern Retail
Omni Talk is the retail blog for retailers, written by retailers. Chris Walton and Anne Mezzenga founded Omni Talk in 2017 and have quickly turned it into one of the fastest growing blogs in retail. 