Gail: Delivering results

Location: Bristol, United Kingdom

Summary: For nearly 20 years, Gail has demonstrated a passion for people, community and good old-fashioned retailing.

Fisher Award winner Gail Bradley, Store Excellence in Europe

When a new, large-scale shopping center opened near the Mall at Cribbs Causeway in the U.K., things looked uncertain.

But Gail Bradley didn’t give up.  As store manager for Gap and GapKids store #930, she promoted her store as a key player in the mall — securing top advertising space and participating in fashion shows. She even helped ensure that a local morning television show was filmed outside her store.

Her passion to “deliver: results” helped transform negative traffic into positive sales comps that surpassed the other apparel retailers in the mall — and for her quick action, Gail was named the winner of the Donald G. Fisher Award for Store Excellence in Europe.

The award is given to store managers who demonstrate Don Fisher’s passion, inspiration and love for stores while delivering “unsurpassed business results, customer care, leadership, and community commitment.”

“I still can't believe it,” Gail said. “I'm so proud of my team and district — without them, none of this would be possible. It's a great honor to be recognized out of the whole of Europe. It’s like winning the Oscars.”

During Gail’s 20-year tenure at Gap, she’s helped open a number of new stores in the U.K. market. Her store consistently receives high Customer Experience Survey scores, delivering 100 percent on “floor availability” and 97 percent on “store standards.”

She’s also converted customers by understanding their needs and listening to staff ideas. She successfully lobbied to introduce Maternity and Premier Baby and expand her store’s women’s assortment — helping achieve the second-highest sales per square foot in the country. Her attention to cost savings helped her store achieve a decrease in controllable costs.

Gail has helped her store build strong ties with the community by participating in monthly fundraising and weekly volunteer activities, such as painting a local community center. As an award winner, Gail received a $10,000 grant to a nonprofit of her choice.

Gail has nurtured and developed employees from associates into supervisors and managers. She’s also achieved the highest Employee Opinion Survey (EOS) scores in the district.

“This award stands for all that I'm passionate about,” she says: “people, community and good old-fashioned retailing.” I was one of the fortunate people to have met Donald Fisher in San Francisco and in London and what a remarkable man he was. This is the reason this award is so special to me and my team.”