Forever 21 Went Bankrupt; What Now?
Retail store, Forever 21, on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles offers 70% off select style clothing for the Valentine’s Day holiday.
February 13, 2020
You only get one chance to make a good first impression. The clothes you shop for can build that foundation and retail stores play a big role.
Since 1984, Forever 21 has been a big contributor to the fashion industry, but in 2019, the multi-million dollar company filed for bankruptcy and closed over 300 stores worldwide. Formed by Do Won and Jin Sook Chang, a Korean-American business couple, their big focus was to bring new fashion styles at low production costs. It started as a 900 square foot store in Los Angeles with a majority of Korean-Americans making purchases and then expanded as a well-known retail fashion franchise.
However, as competition grew and trends changed, Forever 21 tried too hard to remain the best. Although fast fashion is not uncommon in the industry, it was not what led to its downfall. It was the increase of lack of appeal from their targeted buyers.
I was not really surprised when Forever 21 closed because over the years, the designs on the clothes became questionable.
— Tammi Tran
Customers began to lose interest in Forever 21 and began shopping at other stores like H&M, Zara, and Fashion Nova. Forever 21 was also late to increase it’s online shopping platform.
Due to its bankruptcy, Forever 21 ordered the closing of 21 California stores, laying off around 350-400 former employees. Orange County stores that have closed are: Anaheim, Irvine Spectrum Center, Fashion Island, and the Tustin Marketplace. Before closures, Forever 21 had increased discounts and sales, with items up to 70% off.
Senior, Giovanni Gutierrez, is one of those shoppers who have changed where they shop. “I’ve shopped at Forever 21 before. (But) I usually go to Nordstrom Rack. I like to buy more expensive brands too like Supreme and limited edition shoes,” said Gutierrez.
There was also the recent scandal in 2019 with Forever 21 and Ariana Grande. Ariana Grande was asked to do an ad for Forever 21. However, they did not have enough money that she demanded; Forever 21 used an Ariana Grande look alike in an ad and used a similar concept to her album. The look-alike ad inevitably led to Grande suing Forever 21.
Fashion and fashion trends change over the years and celebrities tend to heavily influence our taste and style. Currently, influencers like Bad Bunny and Billie Eilish are dominating the fashion industry.
Freshman, Giselle Barrera, said, “I like listening to Billie Eilish because her music gets me in like an out of place mood to like to calm down. Her style does not influence me as much as her music does because I mainly focus on her music. I shop at different places for my clothes, but mainly, I shop at Hot Topic for most of my clothes.”
Puerto Rican singer, Bad Bunny, has contributed to recent trends that include painting nails for males and exaggerated clothing that stand out to the general public as “feminine.”
Billie Eilish also plays a huge role in the fashion industry, appealing to a big audience with oversized clothing and excessive jewelry with bold colors. Eilish is known for wearing clothes that range from expensive, designer brands to outfits straight from the thrift shop instead of big retailers like Forever 21.
Senior Celso Porron checking out clothing from the men’s section. “There’s just nothing here,” says Porron after finding little to no clothing available for males at Forever 21.
Now, shoppers are heading in a different direction when they buy their clothing. Tastes vary from shopping online to retail stores. Online, Fashion Nova has taken the lead in selling as well as H&M, Hollister, and Abercrombie & Fitch. Also, some people choose to shop at more expensive places such as Supreme and Sneakers on apps while other shoppers choose thrift stores where cheap prices can be found.
In early February, Forever 21 was sold by Won and Chang for $81 million to Simon Property Group, Brookfield Property Partners and Authentic Brands. With the selling, its side brands are also being handed over to the new buyers.
Forever 21 is a known brand, where only time will tell how it rebrands itself under new ownership and if it plans to stay open, forever.
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Nayli A Jijon • Mar 2, 2020 at 8:01 am
To be honest I wasn’t aware of the decline in sales for Forever 21. Although in a way I wasn’t a big fan of Forever 21, their clothes weren’t necessarily LACKLUSTER but it was something I would never wear. To me, this case is a big FRENZY full of PERNICIOUS and INANE occurrences. the most infuriating thing is that Forever 21 made the decision to hire a look-a-like leading to their misfortune, that is unless something happened behind the scenes. they should have known an INFAMOUS attribute will be given to them. Either way, times are changing and not every store will be able to keep their stand in the industries/
Jessica P Lopez • Feb 19, 2020 at 2:11 pm
I was not surprised when I heard the news. Other stores have similar pieces for a better price. Whenever I would try to shop at a Forever 21, I would never find anything.
Vanessa Landa • Feb 19, 2020 at 1:11 pm
Forever 21 used to be everyones go to store. I totally agree with what is going on.
Sergio Trujillo Trejo • Feb 19, 2020 at 11:09 am
Fashion retailer Forever 21 has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US. It was no shocker to me that this company would go bankrupt; even some store owners were FRETFUL when this was announced. Forever 21 ASCENDED at the beginning of 2009, with clothing popularity coming from teen consumers. But when other major companies such as Macy’s, JCP, Kohls, and Nordstrom competed for the fashion retail market, Forever 21 would be TERMINATED. New styles of clothing were being implemented and Forever 21 scrambled for new I.P.’s. It wasn’t enough exchange for Forever 21 to recover and on September 2019, Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy.
Jennifer • Feb 19, 2020 at 8:59 am
I personally love shopping at Forever 21 because they have unique trends and styles that I like to incorporate into my everyday outfits. However, I do agree that the company should have been COGNIZANT when using a look-alike of Ariana Grande to promote their merchandise. When I sometimes go shopping for clothes, I usually FORTHWITH towards Forever 21 or H&M. I remember going on a trip to San Mateo and seeing the Forever 21 store closing down at the mall. Most of the items were under $10! I really hope the company doesn’t come to its TERMINATION and continues selling those amazing pieces of clothing it stocks.
Maryann Milan • Feb 18, 2020 at 11:07 pm
When an exclusive business is running out of clothing lines to sell, they should obviously come up with a popular looking brand, right? Forever 21, in this case, should have TERMINATE any idea that was, without a doubt, copying something popular amongst teenagers these days, that would not have been looked around and allowed. The days of Forever 21, with its strong theme presence, have been numbered, thanks to the retail apocalypse, that the internet changed due to consumers’ shopping habits. This particularly obviously had to AFFLICT chain stores and that now has shut down one of the teenagers’ most reliable and loved stores. The chain’s lack of an obvious fashion identity previously helped it ASCEND from evolving competitors to range in multiple clothing lines. Its bountiful selection helped it appeal to a range of customers. Although the bankruptcy filing and consequent sale seem to be Forever 21’s end, it doesn’t mean there can’t be more time to plan for a second chance at a different title. Maryann
Susana • Feb 18, 2020 at 10:33 pm
Forever 21 did become a boring store to shop at. There is no variety of clothes, and when there is there’s always some weird logo ruining it. This had led the company to be INDIGENT. Explains why the store started to give everything out for a low amount of price. There had also been many concerts whether to TERMINATE the store or not. There’s not beneficial worth coming out of this. Well, unless Forever 21 doesn’t step up their game, they will only EXACERBATE the problem. -Susana
Isabelle Mendoza • Feb 18, 2020 at 10:08 pm
The situation going on with Forever 21 and all their stores right now is more SINISTER than we all expected. It is scary because this is a store we all shopped in one way or another whether it was for kid’s clothes or clothes that we bought when we first started fitting into teenage- adult clothes. At first, seeing that Forever 21 was falling into the loss of customers, this was seen as a SKIRMISH, because people thought the famous store would be able to recover from their downfall and regain their money. However, the questionable designs on their clothes caused the clothes to THWART their plans on becoming big again.
Priscila Alvarado • Feb 18, 2020 at 9:02 pm
Forever 21 was a major department store in the fashion industry and is UBIQUITOUS everywhere. But it is really shocking to see that what was once a successful company has now slowly deteriorated over time. However, I do feel that it is for the best since the brand has been involved with multiple controversies which is one of the major factors that lead to their INDIGENT situation. Aside from the bankruptcy and numerous scandals, the dissatisfaction of customers for the lack of diversity in size and poor clothing designs is another reason why I feel TERMINATING the store all together would actually be more beneficial, especially for young teenagers and young adults. While I did enjoy shopping there at times I still feel that its numerous problems would eventually lead to the downfall which is why closing all the stores would actually be the best solution for the owners to develop as a brand.
Priscila
Ximena • Feb 18, 2020 at 8:09 pm
The article is intriguing because it demonstrates that even a MONOLITHIC company can become bankrupt. I wasn’t surprised when I became COGNIZANT of this information because the store has begun to lose its popularity and many people started shopping at other retailers. The last time I shopped at Forever 21, I noticed that there aren’t many styles of clothing to choose from and a fair amount of the clothing looks similar. The new owners of Forever 21 should sell different styles of clothing to gain customer’s interest in the store once more. For instance, if Forever 21 would sell clothes that keep up with the current trends it would TERMINATE their bankruptcy because people would shop there again.
– Ximena
Christo Maritn Hernandez • Feb 18, 2020 at 4:25 pm
In my perspective, I see where people are coming from when they see Forever 21 and how it became bankrupt. I PROGNISTICATE that Forever 21 will not close but it will have more downfalls and will lose a lot of there money. Many people that have shopped at Forever 21 say that it is very “RUDIMENTARY”. Parents such as mine can CONCUR that Forever 21 can have some questionable designs. Nowadays people are very judgemental when it comes to someone wearing certain types of clothes. When it comes to shopping at Forever 21 people can think very INANE about it.
Christo Hernandez
maitri barriga • Feb 18, 2020 at 4:22 pm
The number of people not purchasing from Forever 21 is beginning to ASCEND. I personally like to shop at thrift stores to buy my clothes because I end up finding something cute nobody at school will have, and it’s TRANQUIL to thrift. My JURISDICTION is the that Forever 21 doesn’t really have nice clothes, they went out of style. I think they should’ve respected Ariana Grande and shouldn’t have used a look alike to promote a 7 Rings inspired line. Hopefully, Forever 21 will learn how to change with the times and create clothes people will actually buy. Maitri.
Michelle Avila • Feb 18, 2020 at 3:37 pm
People think it’s arbitrary that many forever 21 stores online closed down but there are many reasons listed why. I think even if forver21 didn’t get suid by Ariana or bankrupt their clothing was still a bit questionable like Tammi Tran said. Forever 21 fashion industry is also one of the most clothing that sells but is also very expensive. Some people think that it’s thwarting their brand but Forever 21 has been already going down ever since. I believe that Forever 21 is a good brand but it should work on its clothing and prices.
Daisy • Feb 18, 2020 at 2:34 pm
In my opinion, Forever 21 has been going downhill for years due to the lack of stylish clothing. I feel that other stores in the mall or outlets will start to ASCEND since there is now one less store to shop at. Many stores have gone bankrupt for example Charlotte Russe, slowly the stores were gone and now only two stores exist but are located in REMOTE areas. To EXACERBATE the situation many people lost their jobs and this leads to high levels of unemployment which is yet to be spoken about by the company owners. As on can see, Forever 21 is just one of the many stores that have followed a pattern and goes bankrupt, who knows how many more stores will disappear over the next couple of years.
Lizeth Fuentes • Feb 18, 2020 at 12:38 pm
I used to shop at Forever 21 it was the store that I always had to go in and buy something but over the years their design became so unpleasant. I don’t shop at Forever 21 now because the times I used to go their designs would make me FRETFUL, it’s just a waste of time. I did know that they are trying to ASCEND the business back up. Won and Chuang must have to feel EXCRUCIATING for having to sell their company. Hopefully, the rebrands of Forever 21 are nice and fashionable to wear.
Hector Ledezma • Feb 18, 2020 at 11:05 am
I mostly agree with your opinion in this article. Forever 21 has gone downhill within the new upcoming styles and trends it hard for everyone to keep up. I like how you got other people’s inputs but I think that forever 21 deserves more credit for having more affordable clothing and cute simple specific style for their brand. That’s partly why the brand fell out of place because people are into different things that they don’t offer.
Leslie Ochoa • Feb 18, 2020 at 11:02 am
I personally liked to shop at Forever 21 and I had CONSTERNATION when I found out they went bankrupt. Forever 21 was a store that I liked to shop at because it had good prices. I had not been aware of the 2019 scandal Forever 21 had with Ariana Grande. Now that I am COGNIZANT of this scandal I don’t feel so encouraged to buy at Forever 21 because I would want to shop at a store that is fair and true. Now that I will not shop at Forever 21 anymore I will be DISCERNING other stores. I will be shopping at other stores like Hollister which is a store that has nice clothing at decent prices.
Leslie