Forever 21 parent finishes merger with JCPenney
By: Jonathan Limehouse
USA Today
..... The parent company of fashion retailer Forever 21 has merged with JCPenney to from a new company called Catalyst Brands.
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Spare Group, which is also over the brans Apostrophe, Brooks Brothers, Eddie Bauer, Lucky Brand and Nautica, announced the merge January 9 [2025] in a deal that includes the department store chain's excursive private brands, such as Stafford, Arizonan and Liz Claiborne.
..... "Catalyst Brands Brings together the rich heritage of six unique brands with modern energy and a new vision for success. The word "catalyst' reflects our drive to accelerate innovation and energy and amplify the impact of this powerhouse portfolio. Together, we bring scale, experts, and broad appeal to customers across America," Marc Rosen, the former CEO of JCPenney and new CEO of Catalyst Brands said in a news release.
..... The new company will be headquartered at JCPenny's corporate location in Plano, Texas, and it will have traditionally offices in New York, Los Angels and Seattle, according to the release.
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Catalyst Brands is launching with more than $9 billion of revenue, 1,800 store location, 60,000 employees and $1 billion of liquidity, the company said.
.... Other shareholders a part of the joint venture include shopping malls owner Simon Property Group; global investment firm Brookfield Corporation; brand management company Authentic Brands Group; and clothing retail company Shein, according to the release.
..... Authentic Brands brought Forever 21 out of bankruptcy in February 2020, Bloomberg reported. The company then licensed it to Spare to run through a fleet of around 500 stores, some of which were leased by Simon, the outlet said.
..... JCPenney filed for bankruptcy protection in 2020 and was brought by Siman and Brookfield Asset Management Incoorpartment, according to Bloomberg.
..... The company also said it plans to use data-driven and AI technology to "enhance its supply chain and inventory management incapables and to deepen consumer relationships."
..... "Our relationship with more than 60 million customers and the deep data we have cerated a compelling consumer value proposition across our brands. We can design a more personalized shopping experience, offer unified loyalty and credit card programs, and ultimately, cross-sell more effectively," Rosen said.