NEW YORK and INDIANAPOLIS and CHICAGO, Feb. 19,
2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Authentic Brands Group
(ABG), a global brand development, marketing, and entertainment
company, today announced the acquisition of America's original fast
fashion retailer, Forever 21. ABG and Simon Property Group (Simon)
(NYSE: SPG) will each own 37.5 percent, and Brookfield
Property Partners (Brookfield)
(NASDAQ: BPY) will own 25 percent of the intellectual
property and operating businesses.
With this move, ABG, Simon, and Brookfield become the new ownership group for
Forever 21. Building on the success of Aéropostale, this similar
ownership structure positions Forever 21 for long-term performance
and growth. This acquisition further diversifies ABG's experiential
retail and eCommerce vertical and boosts the value of its brand
portfolio to $12.5 billion in global
annual retail sales.
"Forever 21 is a powerful retail brand with incredible consumer
reach and a wealth of untapped potential," said Jamie Salter, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of ABG.
"We're looking forward to working with the F21 team and our global
partners. Together, we'll revitalize the brand's core business and
connect with audiences around the world through new product
offerings and experiences."
Forever 21 is a global fashion retailer of women's, men's, and
kid's clothing, accessories, and footwear, as well as beauty. The
LA-born brand, which was established more than three decades ago,
is known for offering a broad selection of on-trend and
fashion-forward merchandise at a compelling value. It is expected
that Forever 21 stores will continue to operate across
the United States and
international territories. The brand's new owners will also oversee
the continued operation of its headquarters in Los Angeles, CA and maintain its robust
eCommerce business.
Forever 21 is working with various landlords to continue store
operations in key regions. Forever 21 will convert its current,
owned store operations in Central
America, South America,
Mexico, the Philippines, and the Caribbean to a licensed partnership model. The
new ownership group will work with existing and new partners to
expand Forever 21 across key territories, including South America, Western and Eastern Europe, China, Southeast
Asia, Middle East, and
India.
ABG will leverage its marketing expertise and global network of
partners to inject new life into the brand, with an emphasis on
trend-conscious design, speed to market, and moving towards a more
sustainable supply chain. The strategy will focus on engaging Gen Z
audiences by introducing refreshed creative, targeted digital
campaigns, and influential collaborations.
About Authentic Brands Group
Authentic Brands Group
(ABG) is a brand development, marketing, and entertainment company,
which owns a portfolio of global media, entertainment, and
lifestyle brands. Headquartered in New
York City, ABG elevates and builds the long-term value of
more than 50 consumer brands and properties by partnering with
best-in-class manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers. Its brands
have a global retail footprint in more than 100,000 points of sale
across the luxury, specialty, department store, mid-tier, mass, and
e-commerce channels, and more than 5,850 freestanding stores and
shop-in-shops around the world.
ABG is committed to transforming brands by delivering compelling
product, content, business, and immersive experiences. It creates
and activates original marketing strategies to drive the success of
its brands across all consumer touchpoints, platforms, and emerging
media. ABG's portfolio of iconic and world-renowned brands
generates more than $12.5 billion in
annual retail sales and includes Marilyn Monroe®, Mini Marilyn®,
Elvis Presley®, Muhammad Ali®, Shaquille O'Neal®, Sports
Illustrated®, Dr. J®, Greg Norman®, Neil Lane®, Thalia®, Nautica®,
Aéropostale®, Forever 21®, Juicy Couture®, Vince Camuto®, Herve
Leger®, Judith Leiber®, Barneys New York®, Frederick's of
Hollywood®, Nine West®, Frye®, Jones New York®, Louise et Cie®,
Sole Society®, Enzo Angiolini®, CC Corso Como®, Hickey Freeman®,
Hart Schaffner Marx®, Adrienne Vittadini®, Taryn Rose®, Bandolino®,
Misook®, 1.STATE®, CeCe®, Chaus®, Spyder®, Tretorn®, Tapout®,
Prince®, Volcom®, Airwalk®, Vision Street Wear®, Above The Rim®,
Hind®, Thomasville®, Drexel®, and Henredon®.
For more information, visit authenticbrandsgroup.com.
Follow ABG on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
About Simon
Simon is a real estate investment trust
engaged in the ownership of premier shopping, dining,
entertainment, and mixed-use destinations, and an S&P 100
company (Simon Property Group, NYSE: SPG). Our properties across
North America, Europe, and Asia provide community gathering places for
millions of people every day and generate billions in annual sales.
For more information, visit simon.com.
About Brookfield Property Partners
Brookfield Property
Partners, through Brookfield Property Partners L.P. and its
subsidiary Brookfield Property REIT Inc., is one of the world's
premier real estate companies, with approximately $88 billion in total assets. We own and operate
iconic properties in the world's major markets, and our global
portfolio includes office, retail, multifamily, logistics,
hospitality, self-storage, triple net lease, manufactured housing,
and student housing.
Brookfield Property Partners is the flagship listed real estate
company of Brookfield Asset Management Inc., a leading global
alternative asset manager with over $540
billion in assets under management. More information is
available at www.brookfield.com.
Brookfield Property Partners L.P. is listed on the Nasdaq Stock
Market and the Toronto Stock Exchange. Brookfield Property REIT
Inc. is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Further information is
available at bpy.brookfield.com.
Contact:
Haley Steinberg, VP, Marketing
Communications
814-882-2913
hsteinberg@abg-nyc.com
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SOURCE Authentic Brands Group