good consumer value (Rudnitsky, 1987, pp. 89-90). In the implementation of this strategy, the firm monitors consumer demands and financial capabilities, in order to determine which segments of the population The Gap, Inc. should seek to serve, and in order to determine how these segments should be served.
Within this structure, the current objective of The Gap, Inc. is to target primarily the up-scale casual clothing consumer family (Rudnitsky, 1987, pp. 89-90). In the pursuit of this objective, The Gap, Inc. operates The Gap stores which cater to teenagers and adults, and GapKids stores which cater the children.
The firm has several specific goals. These goals include the following:
1. The opening of 150 new The Gap stores per year through the mid-1990s (Schiffman, 1992, p. 1688; Shao and Zinn, 1991, p. 36).
2. The opening of 4o to 50 new GapKids stores per year through the mid-1990s (Schiffman, 1992, p. 1688; Shao and Zinn, 1991, p. 36).
3. Earning a return-on-investment of 25.0 percent (minimum) on net worth annually. Return on equity in 1991 was 34.3 percent (Caminiti, 1991, p. 106).
Although The Gap, Inc. operates through separate store groups, each with its own Senior Vice-President, and although the firm has organizational units covering merchandising, buying, facilities management, and so forth (Standard, & PoorÆs, 1991, p. 1468), the actual management of the firm is largely a one-man operation (Rudnitsky, 1987, pp. 89-90). Millard Drexler is a hands-on President, who makes decisions related to retail store environments, product quality, product style, product lines, target markets, and so forth (Caminiti, 1991, p. 106; Shao and Zinn, 1991, p. 36). He is also a chief executive who visits company retail outlets daily, and who often makes on-the-spot decisions at one retail store which become effective throughout the organization (Rudnitsky, 1987, pp. 89-90). An organization chart for The Gap, Inc. is ...