On the record · Other
Forever 21
Authentic Brands Group (backed by CVC Capital Partners, HPS Investment Partners, and Leonard Green & Partners) acquired Forever 21 out of its first bankruptcy in 2020. Despite the rescue, ABG's asset-extraction model couldn't overcome the $1.5B debt load. Filed second Chapter 11 in March 2025; all 355 U.S. stores closed by May 2025. ~27,000 employees affected.
Research depth
Outcomes researched
Reviewed operating findings or a classified operating outcome are available.
Record updated Sept. 4, 2026
Current ownership
Current owner not established
This record does not identify a current owner. That absence is a gap in the record, not a conclusion about ownership.
1 ownership record has an unresolved current/former status.
Ownership and transaction history
Chronology from recorded ownership periods, transactions and reviewed outcome events. Event order does not imply causation.
May 1, 2025
Operations ceased
Operating outcome
Sept. 1, 2025
Revival or successor activity recorded
Operating outcome
Date not recorded
What happened under and after ownership
Operating outcome
Ceased operations, then returned
F21 OpCo, the US operating company formed by Authentic Brands Group, Simon Property Group and Brookfield Property Partners after Forever 21's 2019 bankruptcy, filed a second Chapter 11 in March 2025 citing competition from Shein and Temu, and closed all roughly 354 US stores and the US website by May 2025.
Authentic Brands Group, which kept the brand's intellectual property, installed new US licensees in September 2025 and relaunched forever21.com as a digital-first operation. As of August 2025 it had not confirmed any reopened US stores.
Authentic Brands Group owns the Forever 21 brand and licenses US e-commerce and wholesale; unaffiliated international licensees kept operating throughout.
- Founded
- 1984
- Sponsor at closure
- Authentic Brands Group, Simon Property Group and Brookfield
- CNBC · 2025 · second Chapter 11 filing, ownership by Authentic Brands Group/Simon/Brookfield consortium, all US stores expected to close
- Authentic Brands Group (company primary) · 2025 · September 2025 relaunch of forever21.com under new US operating partners Unique Brands, Mark Edwards Apparel and Kidz Concepts
- Retail Dive · 2025 · international Forever 21 stores/licensees continued operating without interruption during the US bankruptcy; ABG in discussions to reopen US stores, no confirme
What we do not know
These are gaps in the public record, not findings about the organization.
- No current public ownership assessment has been published.
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