GAP is coming to Turkey
I just learned from Jepalert (a site giving the latest news updates about Turkey in English) that GAP will be opening stores in Turkey and Saudi Arabia. 90 GAP and 20 Banana Republic by 2012.
Before my sister, wife and others get their hopes up. I have to give a reality check. I seriously doubt that the sales racks will be as lucrative as GAP stores in the states even though a lot of their products are produced here in Adana. I have a feeling $20 shirts will sell for 70YTL and $40 jeans will go for over a hundred.
I think it will be funny to see how they work the PR for their name since GAP is the common acronym for Southern Anatolia Project (Gueney Anadolu Projesi), Turkey’s best known development project in Southeast Turkey. This poor war-torn region is commonly referred to as the GAP region.
A Foreign Perspective 
Oh My Gosh!!! If GAP opens here Turkey will be the best place to live in the world! Ikea now ships with phone order, GAP opens a stores what else a human being can ask from life!
I’m guessing that we wouldn’t be able to shop there…think of Benneton, Tommy Hilfiger, Levi’s, for crying out loud. They are so amazingly overpriced…I’m sure Gap and Banana Republic will be more than happy to jump on the over-pricing bandwagon.
GAP is already in Turkey. In fact, it was here for a long time! =)
There is an abercrombie store here in Istanbul and the prices are outrageously expensive. Something like 80ytl for a t-shirt and 150ytl for a sweatshirt. But for some reason people are just buying it up.
Gap is already well known but I’m curious to find out how Banana Republic will do since it is pretty much unknown here.