First ad campaign for Gap's Forth and Towne.

The much-anticipated first campaign for Gap's Forth & Towne, a retail concept it unveiled in September 2004 (and officially named the following April) targeting women 35-plus, will launch this week, and the company would like to see its high-fashion effort reverberate with higher sales across all its divisions.

"The chic revolution begins," via AR, New York, breaks regionally in newspapers and magazines in markets with current or upcoming Forth and Towne locations, then goes national in December issues of Elle and More. Marketing will have a look and message distinct from other Gap brands, including older noncelebrity models, some in their 50s. A fashion call to action will urge the target consumer to "Go Forth and be chic" or "Speak softly and carry a big purse."

"We recognize the audience, and the target demographic and psychographic we are focusing on," said Kimberley Grayson, svp-marketing at Forth & Towne. "We're not about showing younger women wearing clothing that is for a woman in a different decade. It's a high-fashion campaign."

The effort also includes mall advertising, outdoor in Atlanta and Los Angeles, and direct mail to support 14 stores scheduled to open this fall in Atlanta, Houston and Seattle, plus California locations in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose and Santa Barbara. Five locations opened in New York and Chicago in August 2005. Spend was not disclosed. Gap spent $324 million on media across all its divisions in 2005, per TNS.

It is too early to determine whether Forth & Towne can establish its presence among older female consumers. Gap has not released financial figures regarding its first five stores. Although Gap is excited about the division—Paul Pressler, Gap CEO and executive creative director, called it "an important long-term growth opportunity for Gap Inc." when the concept was announced—the company has made its share of mistakes with other retail divisions, which include Banana Republic, Old Navy and its namesake Gap brand. Second quarter profits this year tumbled 50% and same-store sales slid 5% during the period, per company reports. Gap is in a turnaround mode as it focuses on improved product, marketing and its store environment in an effort to win back customers.

Gap is far from the first retailer to try to romance the older female shopper. The demo is currently being wined and dined by such specialty chains as Chico's, Eileen Fisher and Janeville, and department store brands Ellen Tracy, Dana Buchman and Sigrid Olsen.

Historically, this has proven to be an on-again off-again relationship for retailers. Chico's, for example, one of the first and most successful to woo fashionable 40-plus women with its embellished tops and bohemian skirts, has seen sales slow of late. It is now putting its efforts into its newer brands, a 200-store chain called White House/Black Market, along with Soma, which sells intimate apparel.

And, some national department stores are desperately seeking to reconnect with older females after focusing on younger consumers.

Banana Republic, also handled by AR, targets a young consumer with ads featuring stylish urbanites in its traditional sweaters and blazers.

"There's no confusion between the two," said AR president Raul Martinez. "Forth & Towne's campaign and tagline say we're speaking to you directly and make you look the way you perceive yourself as being. It's like taking fashion back to a women's base."

Grayson said Gap sees Forth & Towne apparel, which ranges from tailored separates to flirty items, accent pieces and Gap-like sweaters and jeans, as filling a void in the market.

"Paul Pressler identified this white space, this open hole for servicing a customer who has more than needs; she has a desire for fashion that fits and flatters and gets her excited," she said.