Macy’s isn’t the only American retailer expected to close down locations, as Coresight Research suggests around a total of 15,000 store closures to occur nationwide in 2025. Forever 21 joins the expected closures after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, leading to the end of all U.S. store locations.
Gone are the days of roaming the mall in search of the latest trending pieces to be found in your local Forever 21 as the retailer is planning to liquidate sales across more than 300 U.S. stores. Sources say stores will begin liquidating immediately.
You might remember a former whisper about Forever 21 shutting down a few years ago, and that’s because this isn’t the first time the company has filed for bankruptcy. Sunday’s filing was actually the second time in the last six years the store has filed for bankruptcy.
However, when it first filed in 2019, Sparc Group was able to keep the company afloat through a joint venture between Authentic Brands Group, Simon Property (SPG.N) and Brookfield Asset Management (BAM.TO).
Brad Sell, finance chief at the company that operates Forever 21’s U.S. stores, said:
We’ve been unable to find a sustainable path forward, given competition from foreign fast-fashion companies, which have been able to take advantage of the de minimis exemption to undercut our brand on pricing and margin.
Forever 21 has lost more than $400 million in the last three years, racking up a hefty $1.58 billion debt. At its peak, it once supplied jobs to 43,000 employees, generating over $4 billion in annual sales.
The store first opened in 1984 by Korean immigrants, Do Won Chang and Jin Sook Chang. It seems all global locations will remain unaffected.
Seriously, we’re still getting over Lord & Taylor, but at least Century 21 made an iconic return.