Gap brings its limited-edition artist collection to mobile shopping application Spring to drive sales with younger demographics and develop a trendier image.

Spring is a retail app that operates as a virtual mall, creating a collection of relevant brands based off of the user’s interests, and which is growing in popularity with millennials. Gap is hoping to connect to younger demographics that use the app with its the new Gap Remix line, which showcases reimagined versions of the Gap logo designed by various artists.

“With over $200 billion in mCommerce sales last year and a predicted $600 billion in the year 2018, partnering with a mobile app like Spring could play a crucial role in driving sales for Gap through their mobile channel,” said Melissa Greenberg, general manager at Fetch, New York. “Mobile app features like push notifications, loyalty rewards and social referrals can act as tools to help engage users and promote products and push users to make purchases directly on the app.

“If brands do not optimize for mobile, they could quickly be left in the dust,” she said.

Branding cool
Gap is known for offering apparel basics and not as a fashion-forward brand. Its attempt to capitalize on this last October with the Dress Normal campaign backfired, with the brand accused of being “boring,” resulting in stores being forced to reduce prices and lose profits.

Embracing Spring could aid the brand in its journey back into the closets of millennials. Gap needs to be accessible to these shoppers, and with a brand image that deters shoppers who are looking for unique, trendy apparel from entering its bricks-and-mortar stores, it is imperative that steps into mobile and digital are taken.

Partnering with a mobile app such as Spring will help generate brand awareness and drive sales through mobile by accessing millennials where they spend the most time, rather than attempting to coerce consumers to come to a store. These days, it is more important to extend into outside sources to ensure a wider reach and drive sales.

Users of Spring input fashion and accessory categories that appeal to them and the virtual mall curates a list of merchandise and brands that fit their interests in its home feed. The app also allows users to discover and browse new brands in various categories.

The Gap Remix Project page is located all over the app, including the list of brands page. Users can seamlessly share merchandise through social media such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

The shopping app features a store locator that calculates stores within the user’s area and also the option to subscribe to Gap and other brands’ newsletters. The merchandise is listed in Gap’s virtual store where users can quickly purchase by clicking the buy button.

The digital Gap store features a spotlight section where a few of the t-shirts are displayed in a carousel ad. Below that, the complete Gap Remix Collection is available to browse, with various images of the products as well as the artists who designed them also in a carousel format.

With each product a description of the piece, as well as the artist is shown.

Spring allows brands the ability to choose their template and customize the user shopping experience. This feature attracts numerous brands, as it steps away from the traditional third-party seller that typically prevents this power.

The more brands partnering with the app the high number of consumers it will attract.

Remixed marketing
Creating a unique line such as the Gap Remix collection is the ideal method to attaining these new customers as well. The collection allows artists from all over the world to create redesigned models of the iconic Gap logo featured on a line of t-shirts available in select stores and the Spring app.

The Spring app delivers an option to shop these designs to consumers, whether they are interested in Gap or not. For those consumers who have written off Gap, this is a chance to gain them back.

Inviting artists to redesign the logo is an interesting venture for Gap as well. It allows the brand to play with its emblem in a light-hearted and temporary manner.

The current logo has been used since 1986, and in 2010, the brand attempted to roll out a new version but backlash surrounding the new design caused Gap to pull the new symbol.

Reinvention 
This is just one facet of the numerous plans Gap has to restore its image.

Recently, the retailer equipped more of its stores with mobile devices to leverage employee training videos, highlight additional inventory for shoppers and emulate the experience of a flagship store in the hopes of driving sales, suggesting that mobile is cementing its status as a virtual shopping assistant for many brands (see more).

Gap is just one of the many retailers and brands that are cognizant of the advantages of partnership with Spring.

In reflection of the growing excitement around mobile shopping and applications, a bevy of fashion labels and investors have also embraced Spring, offering a highly curated experience targeting younger shoppers as well as many brand-friendly tools (see more).

“Spring Shop has a younger user base who are more inclined to shop on mobile and the t-shirt is certainly targeted at a younger audience, so the campaign is a good fit,” Ms. Greenberg said.

“Initially, it will be more beneficial to have a temporary sale, she said. “Gap will have the opportunity to understand user tendencies and make necessary adjustments to reach the highest possible amount of users and sales.”

“Additionally, a temporary sale will create a buzz around products if they know the sale will soon end and this will help GAP plan future sales,” she said. “Limited edition products always tend to drive an immediate call to action, and mobile is much more connected to the shopper so it is a good fit to target mobile shoppers.”

Final take
Brielle Jaekel is editorial assistant at Mobile Commerce Daily