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Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

bbc.co.uk

121–130 of 139 posts

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#121
post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Khmer Rouge weren’t communists, despite what they may have sometimes claimed. Being funded by the CIA is a useful hint. They were also stopped by socialist Vietnam, a second useful hint. The USSR was actually very successful, especially during Stalin’s time. It went from a semi-feudal country to defeating the Nazis and into space. Eventually it lost the Cold War to the capitalist countries, through infiltration a…

> The USSR was actually very successful, especially during Stalin’s time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excess_mortality_in_the_Soviet... Curious definition of "success". Guess that must all be "propaganda" too.

I’d recommend you at least look at the primary sources for such wild claims, very often they are questionable. The dominant system is clearly capitalism, so narratives that slander alternatives are encouraged.

You could also talk to older people in Eastern Europe like I have, their experience doesn’t match such exaggerations.

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#122
post #104
post #14

For tall guys, Gap is one of the few places you can buy 36" leg trousers and jeans. I wouldn't consider buying them anywhere else and the quality is pretty good too. I wonder if they even realise they almost have a monopoly on that.

but what about 'long torso' tall folk? I'm yet to ever find a good place for that - beside bespoke clothes (which just feels weird to order a v-neck from)

Not sure how present they are in the UK but Express has tops available in ‘Tall’ which is essentially long torso sizing if you buy in slim or extra slim trims.

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#123
American Apparel still exists as an online-only brand... wonder what their sales are. However it is owned by Gildan and despite the name, most of its goods are NOT made in America. Dov Charney (AA's founder) now runs Los Angeles Apparel, which does produce all its clothes in the U.S. (Los Angeles), and is employee-owned.

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#124
post #36

Gap's problems for me: 1) Sticking Gap on everything. That kind-of logo/advertisement in huge lettering is great on the way up, but not on the way down. Superdry take note. You could not pay me to wear either. 2) Pricing and price point. It's frankly been bizarre for years. Overpriced when compared to new competitors, such as Uniqlo. Not quite good enough to compete with other stores, such as Levi's or more designer…

My usual reasoning is, if there's conspicuous branding on the clothing, then the money should be flowing in the opposite direction. Why should I pay a company to advertise for them?

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#125
post #23
post #14

For tall guys, Gap is one of the few places you can buy 36" leg trousers and jeans. I wouldn't consider buying them anywhere else and the quality is pretty good too. I wonder if they even realise they almost have a monopoly on that.

It's a struggle, looking for long-leg trousers in the UK. Next also has them, and their one-from-cheapest range is good enough for me.

I'm 1.70m tall and living in the Netherlands with exactly the opposite problem. Most pants and other clothes are for taller men. I used to buy my clothes in River Island which had a good fit, but they closed the store last year. Buying men's clothes outside the norm is a pain.

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#126

American Apparel still exists as an online-only brand... wonder what their sales are. However it is owned by Gildan and despite the name, most of its goods are NOT made in America. Dov Charney (AA's founder) now runs Los Angeles Apparel, which does produce all its clothes in the U.S. (Los Angeles), and is employee-owned.

I can remember when they were the hot thing in fast fashion, but they were pretty much crushed due to the horrendously bad PR. Grim company.

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#127
post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you live in London, you can/could go into the store, buy the trousers (34" length?) and have them tailored within the day (can't remember if there is a charge for it). If you're outside of London (not sure if the Oxford, Manc stores do it), you're out of luck :(

I am in London, but my local store is just outside. I has no idea this service was a thing. Fortunately for me, the off-the-shelf length is a perfect fit (34" for me).

https://faq-uk.uniqlo.com/articles/en_US/FAQ/Do-you-offer-al... :)

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That is partially (probably mostly) due to brexit - https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/may/17/uk-faces-la... which is mostly being felt in hospitality and retail.

Interesting problem - we're going to have to downgrade people's aspirations if we're not going to import people to do base-level jobs. Will cause social unrest.

Not sure that anyone's aspirations need to be downgraded. Businesses may need to be more willing to invest in efficiency improvements and automation. They may need to take on and train lower-skilled employees that they might not have considered before. And pay higher wages to attract the skills/talent they need.

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is exactly what I'm looking for. Would you mind sharing the store? /Also Swiss

Sure! The store is shirt-discount dot ch. Please mind what I said above though - I've trialed some I can recommend the "B&C Mens V-Neck T-Shirt TRIBLEND" for V-neck shirts and the "Fruit of the Loom Mens Poloshirt PREMIUM" for polos. Obviously, YMMV.

Merci!

Re: Gap to close all 81 stores in UK and Ireland

#130

I'd say things have been heading south for Gap UK shops for the last 10 years and accelerated recently. They have been on a downward quality path for a long time with no apparent strategy. Every time you go back, they have different ranges, so no repeat purchases are even possible. Found something you like and want to buy again? Tough. And the quality got progressively worse. For basics like jeans and t-shirts, I swi…

I like Uniqlo these days. But they don't have a shop near me which is a big shame
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