英国卫报：Gap是如何迷失自己的？(9)（在线收听）

　　When these ads came out, Gap was ubiquitous.

　　当这些广告发布时，Gap无处不在。

　　In 1999, it had more than 2,000 stores around the world, and Gap Inc’s sales had reached $11.6bn.

　　1999年，它在全球拥有2000多家门店，销售额已达116亿美元。

　　But competitors were closing in on Gap’s previously unchallenged position in the market.

　　但竞争对手正在逼近Gap此前在市场上无可挑战的地位。

　　Department stores had started selling jeans, khakis, and casual tops, too, and discount clothing stores like TJ Maxx, Ross and Marshalls were on the rise.

　　百货商店也开始销售牛仔裤、卡其裤和休闲上衣，像TJ Maxx、Ross和Marshalls这样的折扣服装店也在不断崛起。

　　To compete with these lower-priced stores, Drexler had launched Old Navy in 1994, an upbeat alternative to drab discount stores.

　　为了与这些低价商店竞争，德雷克斯勒在1994年推出了品牌Old Navay，这是一个替代单调的折扣店的乐观选择。

　　It was an enormous success -- in 1995, Fisher named Drexler CEO, while he remained at the company as board chair -- but it didn’t help Gap’s position.

　　这是一个巨大的成功--1995年，费舍尔任命德雷克斯勒为首席执行官，同时他仍在公司担任董事会主席--但这对Gap的地位没有帮助。

　　After two years of sinking sales, in 2002, Drexler was out.

　　在经历了两年的销售下滑后，德雷克斯勒于2002年出局。

　　The slump that preceded Drexler’s departure was, at least partly, the result of product misfires.

　　德雷克斯勒离职前的低迷，至少在一定程度上是产品失误的结果。

　　European fast fashion brands were taking off in the US -- H&M opened its first US store in New York in 2000 -- and the Gap team got spooked, turning their focus to trendy clothing rather than the classic items it was known for.

　　欧洲快时尚品牌正在美国蓬勃发展--H&M于2000年在纽约开设了第一家美国门店--Gap团队被吓坏了，他们将重点转向时尚服装，而不是以经典著称的服装。

　　(News articles on Drexler leaving cited “hip-huggers” and “orchid leather pants and crocheted halter tops” as examples of Gap’s misguided attempts at more fashion-centric items.)

　　(关于德雷克斯勒离开的新闻文章引用了“低腰裤”和“兰花皮裤和钩针吊带上衣”，作为Gap在更多以时尚为中心的产品上的误导尝试的例子。)

　　“We just went in the wrong direction,” said Foyle.

　　“我们只是走错了方向，”福伊尔说。

　　“Now, from my heart, I’m always like, brand first, brand first.

　　现在，从我的内心来说，我一直都是品牌第一，品牌第一。

　　It’s the best lesson I’ve ever learned.”

　　这是我学到的最好的一课。

　　Having realised the brand’s error, Foyle remembers going through every clothing category and identifying the key items that had performed well for Gap in the past – a process not unlike the one Gap says it is undertaking now.

　　福伊尔记得，在意识到该品牌的错误后，他仔细检查了每个服装类别，并找出了过去Gap表现良好的关键单品--这一过程与Gap现在正在进行的过程类似。

　　“We really just went back to our roots,” Foyle said.

　　“我们真的回到了我们的本源，”福伊尔说。

　　Sales did pop back up in 2003 and 2004.

　　销售额在2003年和2004年确实出现了回升。

　　The following year, they began a decline that has continued, almost uninterrupted, until the present day.

　　第二年，开始走下坡路，一直持续到现在，几乎没有中断过。