Gap reveals new beauty, accessories management hires

Gap Inc. revealed on Wednesday the appointment of Deb Redmond as general manager of beauty and Michele Parsons as general manager of accessories, as the U.S. retailer pushes into new categories outside of fashion.

Effective immediately, the duo have been tasked with “advancing the strategy, product development, customer experience, and go-to-market execution across the portfolio of brands,” according to a press release, describing the two categories as “promising growth engines” for the American company.

They will report to Eric Chan, chief business and strategy officer at Gap Inc.

Redmond joins Gap after a two-decade tenure at Nordstrom, where she held senior leadership roles including SVP division merchandise manager for beauty. Here, she drove initiatives such as prestige beauty at Nordstrom Rack, and played a key role in the NYC Beauty floor evolution.

Demsey, former executive group president of Estée Lauder, is credited for leading and scaling beauty brands Tom Ford Beauty and MAC Cosmetics.

Coinciding with the appointments, Gap has also recruited industry veterans John Demsey and Reed Krakoff as executive directors of Beauty and accessories, respectively.

Parsons carries product vision, merchandising expertise and P&L management experience from stints at Kate Spade, Coach, J.Crew, and Tommy Hilfiger. Krakoff, a three-time CFDA ‘Accessory Designer of the Year’ recipient, has been credited with transforming brands like Coach and Tiffany & Co., alongside his role as creative chairman of John Hardy and strategic advisor for L Catterton.

“Building on the renewed strength of our iconic brands, we are setting the stage for Gap Inc. to accelerate long-term value creation and connect with our customers in meaningful and culturally relevant ways,” said Richard Dickson, president and CEO of Gap Inc, which operates the Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic and Athleta brands.

“With the support of best-in-class industry leaders and their unparalleled expertise to guide and advise our beauty and accessories businesses, we’re well poised to not only expand our product offerings but establish these categories as promising growth engines for our portfolio. I couldn’t be more excited about the journey ahead and the exceptional talent who will help guide the way.”

Gap Inc. will launch beauty first with Old Navy this fall in 150 stores, as it looks to grow its share of the $100 billion U.S. beauty and personal care market. Many of those stores will set up beauty shop-in-shops with trained beauty associates. The Gap brand will launch beauty in 2026.

From here, Gap Inc. will apply “deliberate, phased approach to the expansion of accessories, building on existing success across handbags, jewelry, and leather goods,” concluded the New York-based company