New Jersey Residents Selected as Finalists for Gap's Third Annual Casting Call Contest

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 08, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- Out of Nearly 900,000 Contestants, Audrey Sussman, 2, Ellen Carron, 3 1/2 and Jaci Rae Stephens, 3 1/2, Selected as Finalists; America Votes on who will be Featured in 2009 babyGap Store Windows Nationwide

Today Gap revealed the 20 finalists in its nationwide contest to find the next faces of babyGap and GapKids, including Audrey Sussman of Jersey City, Ellen Carron of South River and Jaci Rae Stephens of Bedminster NJ. Up against more than 883,000 eligible cuties, Audrey, Ellen and Jaci were selected by Gap's judges and can be spotted striking a pose for babyGap at gap.com/castingcall throughout the voting phase, now through Dec. 21. Starting today, it is up to America to visit gap.com/castingcall and vote to decide the four lovable, personality-filled winners - one baby girl and one baby boy for babyGap and one girl and one boy for GapKids. Winners will be featured in store windows from coast-to-coast in 2009 and will receive other incredible prizes including a year's supply of clothing from babyGap or GapKids and $450 worth of photo gifts from Snapfish.

"We are so excited about this year's Casting Call contest and congratulate all our finalists, including Audrey, Ellen and Jaci," said Pam Wallack, president of babyGap, GapKids and GapMaternity. "This year set a new record for the number of entries in the contest and, while it's not an easy feat to narrow down the finalists to the top 20, we are confident that all of the finalists would do a great job representing the babyGap and GapKids brands."

Introducing Audrey Sussman, Ellen Carron and Jaci Rae Stephens:
Audrey is a tiny dancer - from free-styling to funk classics to doing the Monkey Dance with the Wiggles - Audrey's fashionable feet are always on the move!

Ellen boasts tofu among her favorite foods and has a fondness for Japanese nursery rhymes. When she isn't playing hide and seek or Legos, Ellen can probably be found at Great Adventure amusement park.
Jaci adores going to the playground and loves all music including the Disney Kids music channel. You can often find Jaci playing with her full-service restaurant toy where she cooks, serves and takes food orders.

Audrey, Ellen and Jaci, along with the other finalists, got a sneak-peek of what it's like to be a bonafide model when Gap flew them to San Francisco to participate in a professional photo shoot. Each finalist also received prize packages including a $300 gift card from babyGap/GapKids as well as prizes from Snapfish, the No. 1 online photo service Gap teamed up with on the Casting Call contest.

Casting Call Contest Background:

From Sept. 15 to Oct. 22, parents across the country uploaded their favorite photos of their babies and kids at gap.com/castingcall or brought their little ones to one of 40 photo-taking events that were held at babyGap and GapKids stores across the nation. Once all the entries were in, judges narrowed down the pool of nearly 900,000 entrants to 20 finalists - 10 babies (ages four and under) and 10 kids (ages five to 10).
At the close of the voting phase, which runs from today until Dec. 21, Gap judges will tally America's votes and unveil the four winners of the third annual Casting Call contest in early 2009 at gap.com/castingcall. People can vote once a day, every day, from today until Dec. 21.

About Gap Inc.

Gap Inc. is a leading global specialty retailer offering clothing, accessories and personal care products for men, women, children and babies under the Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta brand names. Fiscal 2007 sales were $15.8 billion. Gap Inc. operates more than 3,100 stores in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Japan and Ireland. In addition, Gap Inc. is expanding its international presence with franchise agreements in Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. For more information, please visit gapinc.com.

Media Contacts:
Katie O'Kane Kim Terry
SS+K for Gap Gap Marketing & PR
kokane@ssk.com kimberly_terry@gap.com
212.419.3374 415.427.4844


SOURCE Gap