Hollister reintroduces Gilly Hicks

By

Kate Dingwall

Published
Jan 31, 2017

Hollister’s tween-skewed brand Gilly Hicks is being reintroduced into the market. After shuttering all stores in 2013, Hollister Co. will now start stocking Gilly Hicks in Hollister stores and online.

Kristin Scott, Brand President of Hollister Co., told the press in a statement, "We recognized an opportunity to redefine the Gilly Hicks brand and we know our Hollister customer will enjoy another destination for fun and cozy bras, undies, and sleepwear. We've designed our Gilly product to be effortless and comfortable to align with our customer's on-the-go, busy lifestyle."

Gilly Hicks initially launched in 2007 but  shut down its 23 stores in 2013 after low levels of teen employment and the growth of ‘fast fashion’ chain brands chased shoppers away. The brand has, and will still, focus on unstructured, unfussy intimates for the teen and young adult audience, specifically focusing on bralettes.

Although Gilly Hicks once boasted 23 of its own brick-and-mortar locations, the brand will now be sold in existing Hollister locations.

Gilly Hicks has a promising outlook – the brand directly competes with Aerie, a mall-based brand that has done surprisingly well in recent years despite mall slow-downs, showing a 32% increase in sales in Q1 of 2016. Victoria’s Secret has seen a slow-down in sales of push-up bras, with consumers preferring unwired, lower-priced bralettes over pricey wired bras.

To coincide with the brand launch, Gilly Hicks will be hosting several promotion events at Hollister stores across the country. The first being a ‘Galentine’s Day’ party’, where customers can shop the inaugural Gilly Hicks collection as well as exclusive valentine’s day prints.

For the two weeks following the launch of the Gilly Hicks brand last Friday, customers can enjoy snacks, coffee, and discounts in Hollister locations.