• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, April 19, 2016

Add Athleta to the long list of marketers hitching their brand to the empowerment wagon: The Gap-owned retailer says it is rolling out a new ad campaign celebrating the power of girl bonding. 

Gap Inc., which has been struggling with declining sales and high-level turnover at its major divisions, has focused higher hopes on Athleta recently. Although it acquired the brand back in 2008, it increased the brand’s footprint to 120 stores last year, and intends to open an additional 15 stores in the current fiscal year.

Called “The Power of She,” the campaign is set to include a 15-second TV spot, a longer version for digital channels, as well as display, mobile and social. Created by Yard, the effort makes a direct appeal to the strength of female friendships. “The frenemy is finished. Undermining is over,” the voiceover says, as it shows girls and women swimming, surfing, fencing, kickboxing, dancing and running.

It’s a hard message not to love, which is why it’s so familiar. Women who like to work out (and the many more who just like to dress like they do) are bombarded by such images, from the athletic messages from brands like Under Armour and Nike, which have made their women’s lines a top priority, competitive retailers, such as Lululemon and VF Corp.s’ Lucy, or the seemingly endless emotional empowerment messages that come from brands like Dove, Pantene, and Secret. 

Like Secret, which has generated so much attention for its Mean Stinks effort, Athleta hopes to gain traction with girls through social media, inviting influencers to start a "like-a-thon.” Shares generate donations to Girls on the Run, an organization that promotes running and healthy activity among girls in grades 3 through 8.

One key point of difference for the brand might be its age focus: The new campaign supports the launch of the Athleta Girls line, due in stores later this month. Gap’s flagship chain is also targeting girls with an empowerment message, with the GapKidsXED line, in partnership with TV personality Ellen DeGeneres.