Gap Inc. announced that President and CEO Art Peck will step down and also resign from the board.
Art Peck in New York City in 2015
Effective immediately, Robert J. Fisher, the current nonexecutive chairman, steps in as acting president and CEO. Bobby Martin, chairman of the compensation and management development committee, has been named lead independent director.
As a member of the founding family, Fisher brings strong leadership and invaluable perspective from his 35-year history with Gap Inc., where he has served in a variety of senior executive positions. Fisher has served on the board since 1990 and been nonexecutive chairman since 2015.
This transition comes at a time when sales growth is declining across the company's three major brands. Companywide same-store sales for the third quarter were down by 4 percent, and they were flat a year ago. By brand, Gap's same-store sales declined by 7 percent, Banana Republic's were off by 3 percent, and Old Navy's fell by 4 percent.
“This was a challenging quarter, as macro impacts and slower traffic further pressured results that have been hampered by product and operating challenges across key brands,” CFO Teri List-Stoll said in a press release. “We have tremendous confidence in our brands and the talented organization that supports them, and we are seeing progress in some key areas. However, there is more work to do to leverage the capabilities we have invested in and deliver the profitable growth we know these brands are capable of delivering.”
By Brannon Boswell
Executive Editor, Commerce + Communities Today
