Groundbreaking Campaign Launches Customer
Pledge, Tools and Resources to Promote Safety and Respect of
Frontline Workers and Customers Alike
As tensions run high and retailers are asked to enforce safety
measures due to the global pandemic, frontline workers often can
face the brunt of customer frustration, which can often manifest in
racist or discriminatory ways. While retailers have long trained
its employees to respect and serve a diverse customer base, now
customers are being asked to join as part of the solution. Today,
Open to All announced its groundbreaking initiative, Inclusive
Retail, a campaign that puts tools and resources in the hands of
businesses and customers alike to ensure the inclusion, safety, and
acceptance of those on the frontlines of retail: floor staff and
sales associates. The project is a collaboration between Open to
All and nonprofit partners Hollaback! and the Retail Industry
Leaders Association (RILA) and corporate partners Ascena Retail,
American Eagle Outfitters, Capri Holdings, DICK’S Sporting Goods,
Gap Inc., H&M, Michaels, Movado Group, Ralph Lauren, Sephora,
and Tiffany & Company.
“Retailers are seeing an alarming rise in discrimination where
floor staff are being targeted for who they are when enforcing
safety measures. Given the rise in hate violence—which is at an
all-time high—frontline workers are more vulnerable than ever,”
said Emily May, co-founder and executive director of Hollaback! “We
are working closely with businesses to address this crisis and we
are thrilled to partner with Open to All to provide greater access
to our resources.”
Open to All is a nonprofit nondiscrimination program that
believes everyone should be welcome regardless of race, ethnicity,
national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and
expression, immigration status, religion or disability.
“The pandemic has highlighted the invaluable role of frontline
workers, who over the past year have kept the economy open at great
personal risk,” said Calla Devlin Rongerude, director of Open to
All. “Our Inclusive Retail campaign works to make retail
environments welcoming, safe and inclusive for employees as well as
customers. We are excited to debut the Customer Pledge and Customer
Action Center and invite consumers to learn more about how we all
can make retail spaces safe and inclusive for all.”
The initiative offers two new resources: The Customer Action
Center and the Open to All Inclusive Retail Business Toolkit. These
resources were developed to support frontline workers, who are
being asked to enforce public health and safety measures at the
risk of potential hostility or discrimination. This is especially
prevalent if the worker is a woman, person of color, person with
disabilities, person of minority faith, or lesbian, gay, bisexual,
or transgender (LGBT).
As one of the Inclusive Retail program’s closest collaborators,
and a founding member of Open to All, Gap Inc. has worked closely
with Open to All and other partners to develop the strategy,
resources and policies used to shape the Inclusive Retail
campaign.
“Our purpose at Gap Inc. is to be Inclusive, By Design, and this
comes to life by actively creating an environment where everyone is
welcome. We believe that when you decide that inclusion isn’t
optional, not only do the gaps between us close, but a whole new
world of possibilities opens,” Chris Nelson, Senior Vice President
of Asset Protection at Gap Inc. “We aspire to bring this to life in
all of our stores and facilities, and for Gap Inc. to be known as a
safe, inclusive place for all. We also know that true change
happens as a collective. That is why we supported Open to All in
creating the Inclusive Retail Business Toolkit to help the entire
retail industry to design experiences with inclusion in mind.”
The Customer Action Center features resources and tools that
empower customers to practice bystander intervention and effective
allyship if they see an employee receiving unjust treatment from
another customer. The bystander intervention tools were created by
Hollaback!, which designs and distributes trainings and campaigns
against street harassment. Customers can also, for the first time,
sign the Open to All Customer Pledge. Similar to Open to All’s
business pledge, it allows customers to declare that they believe
everyone—including employees, visitors, vendors, clients and other
customers—should feel safe, respected, and accepted regardless of
who they are.
The Inclusive Retail Business Toolkit contains resources and
trainings to help retail environments create a culture of inclusion
and belonging, including a sample Customer Belonging Policy, an
“Allyship and Advocacy” training video co-produced with Ralph
Lauren, and a series of allyship and de-escalation materials. The
Inclusive Retail Business Toolkit will also incorporate Sephora’s
landmark study on Racial Bias in Retail, which found shoppers are
not the only ones subject to bias across the retail landscape.
According to their findings, one in five retail employees have
personally experienced unfair treatment at their place of work,
leading Sephora to work in partnership with Open to All to
implement tactics proven to mitigate racial bias in retail.
“Retailers are committed to creating an in-store experience that
is welcoming and, most importantly, safe for all visitors,” said
RILA’s Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility Erin
Hiatt. “Maintaining an environment where customers and employees
feel safe certainly includes adhering to health guidance like PPE
or distancing—but it also means cultivating spaces free from
discrimination of any kind. These new toolkits developed by Open to
All will be valuable resources to support the industry’s commitment
to both.”
Inclusive Retail is a massive undertaking that provides
businesses and customers with the tools necessary to create a
welcoming environment for all while shedding light on the increased
challenges retail workers face during this time of global pandemic.
Through this project, Open to All and its partners affirm to floor
staff and sales associates that they are seen and supported from
corporate offices to those who walk into the store.
About Gap Inc.
Gap Inc., a collection of purpose-led lifestyle brands, is the
largest American specialty apparel company offering clothing,
accessories, and personal care products for men, women, and
children under the Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic, and Athleta
brands. The company uses omni-channel capabilities to bridge the
digital world and physical stores to further enhance its shopping
experience. Gap Inc. is guided by its purpose, Inclusive, by
Design, and takes pride in creating products and experiences its
customers love while doing right by its employees, communities, and
planet. Gap Inc. products are available for purchase worldwide
through company-operated stores, franchise stores, and e-commerce
sites. Fiscal year 2020 net sales were $13.8 billion. For more
information, please visit www.gapinc.com.
About Hollaback!
Hollaback! is a global, people-powered movement to end
harassment. We work together to understand the problem, ignite
public conversations, and develop innovative strategies that ensure
equal access to public spaces. We leverage the very spaces where
harassment happens - from online to the streets - to have each
other’s back and build a world where we can all be who we are,
wherever we are. For more information visit www.ihollaback.org.
About Open to All
Open to All is one of the most significant public education
efforts to date that unites and galvanizes national leaders in
business, civic engagement, and the nonprofit sector to support the
shared American values of fairness and equality. In addition to the
500,000 business members, Open to All includes more than 200
nonprofit members spanning civil rights and racial justice
organizations; LGBTQ equality organizations; health and disability
organizations; faith organizations; and more. Open to All members
are committed to building awareness and understanding about the
importance of nondiscrimination—and to defend the bedrock principle
that when businesses open their doors to the public, they should be
Open to All. www.opentoall.com
About RILA
RILA is the US trade association for leading retailers. We
convene decision-makers, advocate for the industry, and promote
operational excellence and innovation. Our aim is to reimagine and
transform the retail ecosystem—and equip leading retailers to
succeed in it.
RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product
manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for
more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs,
and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities, and
distribution centers domestically and abroad. www.rila.org
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210607005604/en/
Calla Devlin Rongerude, Open to All, calla@opentoall.com Ana
Serafin Smith, Gap Inc., ana_serafin_smith@gap.com Hollaback!,
press@ihollaback.org, 347.889.5510 Melissa Murdock, Retail Industry
Leaders Association, Melissa.Murdock@rila.org
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