Gap "Back to Blue" Great Insights, Questionable Execution

Gap has made a huge investment behind it's back-to-school campaign, which is called "Back to Blue" and focuses on promoting its denim business.

I'm a big supporter of Gap focusing its marketing efforts on core wardrobe categories like denim or khakis because I believe these are the type of items the retailer is famous for and has the most right to win with. I also really love the "Back to Blue" tag-line, not just because it fits with denim theme, but also because Gap = Blue and it signals Gap's resurgence in many consumers' minds driven by a strong turn around strategy over the last several quarters.

However, I do not believe the execution of the Back to Blue campaign is on equity for Gap. Take a look at some of the campaign imagery....

The imagery just does not say Gap to me, it looks much to hipster versus mainstream All-American. It's fine if Gap wants to start evolving its imagery to have a bit more personality, but it cannot just jump there too quickly. Perhaps a more preppy hipster look might work to bridge to Gap's equity but the slightly disheveled, glassy-eyed, slouched over look just does not fit with the Gap of today. I think the brand is reaching too far and risks alienating existing consumers as well as coming off as a poser brand to true hipsters.

Gap CM Seth Farbman explains that "The entire Back to Blue campaign embodies what it means to be comfortable in your own skin".  This might be case, and I can see this attitude come to life in the imagery, but it doesn't mean the execution is done in a way that is consistent with the brand equity. Great campaign insight, great tag-line, poor execution. That's my view at least. We'll see what the consumer says. At the very least, Gap should see a bump from fielding its first TV ads in 4 years.