Gap CEO says the retailer’s ‘cool’ factor and Walmart’s scale make tie-up the perfect match

Gap CEO Sonia Syngal thinks Walmart is the perfect partner for the apparel retailer as the two companies endeavor to launch a new home brand together.

“This is a new chapter for us,” Syngal told CNBC’s Jim Cramer on “Mad Money” Thursday evening. “We’re excited about the scale of Walmart, coupled with the cool of Gap.”

CNBC reported a day earlier that Walmart tapped Gap to launch a home brand, called Gap Home, that will debut with about 400 pieces on Walmart.com and across many of the big-box retailer’s stores.

For Gap, it marks the first time the company has ventured into a category outside of apparel as it looks for opportunities to license its globally recognized brand name. For Walmart, the deal proposes a way to hopefully win more sales in the home space — and to win new customers — while elevating its selection of exclusive brands online and in stores.

“Gap is one of the most iconic brands in the world,” Syngal told Cramer. “And brands don’t die. … If we’re strong at home, we can extend the brand around the world with confidence and momentum.”

“What we’re doing is restructuring the business model of how we monetize the [Gap] brand,” she added.

Gap also reported on Thursday fiscal first-quarter sales that surpassed pre-pandemic levels as shoppers turned to Old Navy and Athleta to refresh their wardrobes ahead of the summer months.

The retailer raised its sales outlook for the full year, sending its stock higher in extended trading. Gap’s namesake banner in North America has also started to show early signs of improvement. Meanwhile, e-commerce growth remains strong even as more people begin to leave their homes and head back to the mall.

Syngal told Cramer that, right now, consumers are looking for a medley of “comfort and cocktail dresses.”

While people are eager to get dressed up and socialize again, she said, they also still want to wear leggings and sweat pants around the house. And Gap stands to benefit because it has a mix of brands under its umbrella that offer a variety of styles and price points, she said.