Gap is chasing relevance with beauty, handbags, and a dream team of seasoned luxury executives. But the real story is one of classic retail tension: fix the core problem, or chase the bright, shiny new thing?

Here’s a simple question with big implications: Can Gap reinvent itself by chasing relevance, or is it just distracting itself from the hard work of fixing the core business?

Gap Inc. CEO Richard Dickson arrived with a Midas Touch reputation from the Mattel and Barbie whirlwind. He played the star-studded cast card, beginning with an early 2024 hire of Zack Posen as Creative Director, to the more recent talent from Nordstrom, Coach, Tiffany, and Estée Lauder, along with bold moves into beauty and accessories. On paper, it sounds like a strategic reboot. In practice, he risks a very expensive distraction.

Sure, Wall Street investors love the headlines, but consumers on Main Street see a brand stuck in promotion hell. Walk into a refreshed Gap store, and the experience feels almost serene: minimalist, orderly, leaning into heritage and music, with markdowns tucked away and associates actually helping customers. Then open Gap.com, and you’re hit with a promo barrage: friends-and-family offers, 40 percent off here, 50 percent off there. That disconnect erodes trust faster than any new category can rebuild it.

Meanwhile, many aspirational shoppers chose their handbags and beauty brands to signal status, wealth, and a strong fashion statement.  Gap has yet to earn its place as a destination for covetable apparel; beauty and handbags aren’t even on the Gap Map.

The hard truth in making bad, good is harder than making good, better. The path back for Gap is not another splashy launch. It is a ruthless focus on product and price discipline: fewer choices, better basics, less noise, more coherence. Only then will these product extensions add fuel instead of fog.

So, the real reinvention question is not, “What else can Gap sell?” It is, “Why should shoppers love Gap again?” And that answer starts—and ends—with product, product, product.