When Gap launched CashSoft four years ago, it debuted a small assortment featuring a “proprietary new yarn” meant to replicate the feel of cashmere, a famously expensive material.
“[CashSoft has] all the benefits of what you would want or expect out of cashmere, and then it’s just very easy to take care of,” said Noelle Rogers, Gap’s svp and gm of specialty adult and accessories. Machine-washable CashSoft was an instant success, selling out in just weeks, according to the brand.
Today, it is the focal piece of Gap’s holiday campaign.
Like other Gap campaigns, this year’s holiday iteration is centered around music — specifically, a choir singing a new rendition of the 2009 Miley Cyrus hit “The Climb,” originally recorded for “Hannah Montana: The Movie.” The campaign, officially dubbed “Give Your Gift,” spotlights the 20-year-old London-based singer-songwriter Sienna Spiro. Behind her, she is joined by a multigenerational choir, with members aged eight to 72 — all clad in colorful CashSoft pieces.
The story of this year’s holiday campaign is a story of both the old Gap — with its campaigns known for song and dance — and the new Gap, which has been amid one of the most successful comebacks in brand history for the past two years.
“[Music is] who we are; it’s part of the DNA for Gap,” said Fabiola Torres, Gap’s CMO. “I’ve been in this job for 18 months, and it’s important for us to center everything we do in music.” Simultaneously, she said, “You have to try to do something different. It’s about modernity of the brand, and the new things happening in the new era.”
The brand’s signature — “[celebrating] music through self-expression and unity and individuality” — is something she thinks Gap is uniquely getting right. “I don’t think there’s another brand doing it the way we’re doing it, [with] music at the center,” Torres said.
Torres hopes that just about everyone, from a Gen-Alpha 8-year-old to a 70-something Boomer, will see themselves reflected in the diversity depicted in the holiday campaign. And, she said, giving the brand’s sizable microphone to new talent for the campaign, even when featuring old songs, was intentional. As for the song choice, she explained, “Holiday is a special moment of togetherness, of celebration and of joy, but reflection as well.”
Focusing on 4-year-old CashSoft, which has become a major hit for the brand, made sense, Torres said, adding, “We’re building such great equity on CashSoft as a product [franchise].”
In fact, Rogers said, as soon as temperatures cool, it quickly becomes the No. 1 search term on Gap.com. In 2024, CashSoft sales grew more than 50% year over year, Gap representatives exclusively told Glossy.
In 2022, Gap launched the CashSoft Crewneck, historically its most-searched and best-selling CashSoft style, in a multitude of colors and stripes, and options with matching bottoms. Sets, such as one worn by Meghan Sussex, are an Internet fave. In fact, in 2024, Gap customers opted to buy a full set nearly half of the time when making a CashSoft purchase.
And while CashSoft remains most popular for women, the line was expanded in 2023 to offer options for men, followed by kids and babies in 2024 — accessories were also introduced that year. The franchise is now growing in popularity across those departments, too.
Last year, Gap expanded the franchise to more fashion-forward pieces, like dresses and skirts. Today, Rogers said, the brand sees it as a fashion line as much as a loungewear line — see: pieces like its CashSoft Faux-Fur Collar Zip Cardigan Sweater and its CashSoft Drawcord Hood.
In 2025, Gap has grown the line’s assortment to its largest yet, introducing new blends — heavyweight for men and stretch for women — and expanding the accessories category by 30%.
Per Rogers, CashSoft plays well to the holiday shopping season because of the “customer mindset.”
“It lends itself really nicely into that story, because there is the purchase for yourself, but also for someone else,” she said.
