What: Gap has opened its first branded shop-in-shop within Next’s Oxford Street store in London, in a return to the British high street, following the closure of all its UK stores in 2021 after a strategic review of its business.

Why is it important: The first Gap shop-in-shop is located within Next’s largest West End store on London’s Oxford Street and will be the biggest branded shop within the store, covering 4,000 square feet of retail space. The concept store has been designed to embody Gap’s reinvented approach to retail in the UK, and features an open, modern, and minimal design, and includes its own entrance onto Oxford Street.

The Gap shop-in-shop will sit alongside other brands stocked in the Next store including womenswear brand Lipsy and stationery brand Paperchase. It will also offer embroidery, badging and monogramming customisation stations for Gap customers to personalise their purchases.

Next will operate Gap’s business in the UK and Ireland as a franchise partner, managing its e-commerce business and establishing Gap-branded shop-in-shops within Next. The move is part of the American brand's plans to amplify its omnichannel business to better serve its customers within the UK and Ireland.

Gap opens shop-in-shop within ‘Next’