Forever 21’s operator in the United States filed for bankruptcy on Sunday, as the apparel company, which helped popularize fast fashion in the United States, struggles to compete with online retailers.
F21 OpCo, the operator, as well as some U.S. subsidiaries, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Bankruptcy Court of Delaware, court documents show. The company listed its estimated assets as between $100 million and $500 million, and liabilities of $1 billion to $5 billion. The company also filed for bankruptcy in 2019.
Forever 21 found success in the early 2000s selling cheaply produced fashion that appealed to young women seeking clothes inspired by designer styles, at rock-bottom prices. At its peak, it had more than $4 billion in annual sales and employed more than 43,000 people worldwide in hundreds of stores.
But the retailer expanded too aggressively just as technology was beginning to upend its business.
It first filed for bankruptcy in 2019, closing down more than 30 percent of its stores in the United States, before being bought out of bankruptcy by Sparc Group, a joint venture between Authentic Brands Group and Simon Property Group, a mall operator.
In 2023, Sparc signed an agreement with Shein, the Chinese e-commerce retailer known for its ultralow prices. Shein agreed to buy about a third of Sparc’s shares. Under the agreement, Shein could one day operate stores-within-stores at Forever 21 outlets, while Forever 21’s clothes would be sold on Shein’s site.
Forever 21 did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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