Challenge: Gap wanted to enhance the company’s visibility in Japan and communicate to customers about its commitment to promoting workplace diversity and inclusion.

Approach: APCO designed and implemented an integrated communications campaign, grounded in the company’s key messages and highlighting Gap Japan’s Representative Director Steven Sare’s personal story as an openly gay man living with his partner and children in Japan. APCO also leveraged Gap Japan’s corporate initiatives in this area, such as its first LGBT ally employee training, to engage the media and highlight the company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Results: The media highlights included an in-depth interview in HuffPost Japan with Steven Sare, which told the impactful story of one of the very few openly LGBT business leaders in Japan. Our media engagement also resulted in coverage from a wide range of major media outlets such as Buzzfeed and Asahi Shimbun, which in turn generated additional interview invites from top tier media. Overall, our media and digital campaign successfully strengthened Gap Japan’s position as a pioneer for a more inclusive workplace and as a role model in implementing workplace reforms in Japan.