Athleta Rebuilds Its Brand Around a "Women's World" Concept

In recent years, Gap Inc. has revived its flagship brand through more culturally resonant marketing, driving ten consecutive quarters of sales growth. Now the company wants to apply that same formula to its sister brand Athleta, with a fall 2026 campaign called "My World. My Rules."

At the campaign's center are three women who've carved out space in traditionally male-dominated fields: archer and artist Sagg Napoli, martial artist Jewelianna Ramos-Ortiz, and motorsports athlete Jordan Rand, shot against Iceland's rugged landscape. The campaign also includes sponsorship of singer Olivia Rodrigo's inaugural Daisy Chain Fields festival.

Athleta CMO Erika Everett — a longtime Gap Inc. executive who took the role last October — calls it the brand's sharpest, clearest point of view yet on "who it is and how it wants to show up in the world." While Athleta had previously relied mostly on in-house resources, this time it spent months on the transformation working with Invisible Dynamics, the consultancy that also helped drive Gap's turnaround.

The bold move isn't coming out of nowhere: Athleta's previous 2024 campaign, "Find Your Movement," built on a similar empowerment theme, didn't deliver meaningful growth. Everett acknowledges the brand had previously played it "safer," but says that in an era when purpose-driven content increasingly draws political controversy, it needs to "celebrate how amazing women are" even more boldly.

The numbers show real pressure on Athleta: comparable sales fell 11% in the quarter ended in May, even as the Gap brand itself grew 10% over the same period. Gap Inc. CEO Richard Dickson has called 2026 a "rebuilding" year for Athleta. Last year the company named former Nike executive Maggie Gauger as Athleta's global brand president and CEO.