• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, November 5, 2020

Old Navy is welcoming holiday-pajama season with sass this year in a zippy campaign featuring RuPaul. It’s got all the references that feel right for 2020, including diversity (“pick whatever Santa you want driving your sleigh”), movie-bingeing (“our 18^th time watching 'Love, Actually’”) and something for those pandemic pooches.

The retailer is also expanding its omnichannel offers, even as parent company Gap is shaking up its relationship with the retail world. Old Navy, under new president Nancy Green, says it is offering more holiday deals, both on and offline. It’s expanding contactless curbside options, as well as in-store pickups, with many accomplished in two hours or less.

Signifying a promotional dogfight for all retailers this season, Old Navy is cutting 50% of all online prices from Nov. 23 through Nov. 30. Cardmembers get to access deals a week earlier.

The seasonal strategy comes shortly after Gap Inc. unveiled a new approach for the next few years, backing away from malls, rethinking Banana Republic and leaning into Athleta, its Lululemon-esque athleisure brand.

In a presentation for investors, Gap issued new goals for 2023, including increasing revenues at Old Navy to $10 billion, from $8 billion currently. Old Navy is already the sixth largest apparel retailer in the U.S., and the fourth largest ecommerce site, according to the NPD Group.

Gap is shuttering 175 stores in North America this year and intends to close about 30% of Gap and Banana Republic locations by 2023. Its goal is to have about 80% of revenues coming from online and off-mall sites by that time.

It’s also got big plans for the tiny Athleta brand and intends to double revenues to $2 billion by 2023, opening between 20 and 30 new stores each year. Besides expanding to health and wellness products, it is also pursuing wholesale partnerships to be sold by other retailers.

And it’s intensifying Athleta's “by women, for women” positioning. On Election Day, it released “Women run it all,” a new spot harnessing what it calls the #Powerofshe. The ad describes Athleta as “Run by women for the women who run it all.” Yard NYC is the agency.