Cynthia Sanner got to Gap Inc.'s Fifth Avenue store in New York on Friday two hours before it opened to make certain that she would get one of the dresses French designer Roland Mouret made exclusively for the clothing chain.
She needn't have bothered. She stood alone for an hour and 20 minutes before being joined in line by two other shoppers.
"I was shocked," said the 35-year-old personal assistant from New York. "I thought it was going to be a mob scene."
Sanner's experience suggests that not even borrowing a tactic used by Swedish rival Hennes & Mauritz will help Gap ignite holiday sales.
Chief Executive Paul Pressler is struggling to lure shoppers after comparable sales declined in 27 of 30 months. H&M drew throngs by partnering with designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Stella McCartney.
More retailers are using high-end designers to boost traffic and sales. Target Corp. sells Isaac Mizrahi clothing; Kohl's Corp. will sell a collection by Vera Wang.
Mouret's designs have been worn by celebrities such as Nicole Kidman and Cameron Diaz. But unlike H&M's treatment of its designs, Gap didn't display Mouret's name in stores or windows or even on the clothing.
"It's missed execution," said Mark Montagna, an analyst at New York-based CL King & Associates who rates Gap stock "underperform."
"It's good they are doing this test," Montagna said of the San Francisco-based retailer. "It's more to raise the image of the Gap brand. But it's a missed opportunity."
Gap's shares rose 28 cents to $18.96 on Monday. The stock has increased 7.5% year, compared with a 13% gain on the Standard & Poor's 500 index.
Analysts estimate that Gap's profit will decline for a second year as slumping sales force the retailer to discount. November sales at stores open at least a year tumbled 8%, more than the 5.4% that analysts had expected.
"They already blew" the holiday, Montagna said.
Gap sold a larger Mouret collection in Europe last month. The dresses, priced in the U.S. from $88 to $108, included cowl-neck and capped sleeves and were sold at seven New York stores. Spokeswoman Robin Carr declined to give the European sales performance, except to say the company was "very pleased with customer response."
