
Touted as a historic first, traders at the New York Stock Exchange went casual on Friday, swapping their pressed suit pants for jeans. But the informal looks don't herald a new dress code for the financial insitution. They were part of a publicity stunt for Gap, which is currently promoting its 40th anniversary with a new collection of premium jeans.
Some 1,200 men and women wearing their new denim gathered for a photo op at the exchange in the morning, where posters and banners advertised the new line, and later that day, Gap North America president Marka Hansen and other executives rang the closing bell from the company's San Francisco headquarters. The stunt was organized by Gap—led by executive vice president of marketing Ivy Ross—and the New York Stock Exchange and, because it involved such a large number of workers, the team was on the ground a few days beforehand for fittings.
The retailer also marked its 40th year in business the night before with acoustic concerts—held simultaneously inside more than 700 of Gap's stores throughout the country—that included performances by Marc Broussard in New York, Single File in San Francisco, Lenka and Honeyhoney in Los Angeles, and Parachute in Chicago.