If you walked into a mall ten years ago, Forever 21 was the sun that every teenager orbited. Huge bags. Bright yellow. Piles of $5 camisoles. But if you’ve tried to find one lately, you probably noticed things have changed. A lot.
The question of who owns Forever 21 isn't as simple as pointing to a single founder in a suit anymore. Honestly, the brand has been through a corporate meat grinder over the last few years. It’s no longer a family-run empire. It’s a piece of a much larger, much more complex puzzle involving mall giants, licensing gurus, and even some names you’d recognize from your local department store.
The Short Answer: It’s a Group Effort
Right now, the brand name and the "soul" of Forever 21 (the intellectual property) belong to Authentic Brands Group (ABG).
But owning the name isn't the same as running the stores. This is where people get confused. ABG is basically a giant warehouse of brands—they own everything from Reebok to the likeness of Marilyn Monroe. They don't usually "do" retail themselves.
Instead, they partner up. For a long time, the actual operation of Forever 21 was handled by something called SPARC Group. This was a joint venture between Authentic Brands and Simon Property Group (the people who own probably half the malls you’ve ever been in).
The 2025 Shocker: A Second Bankruptcy
Things took a massive turn recently. In March 2025, the company that actually operated the U.S. stores—F21 OpCo—filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This was the second time in six years.
It was messy.
By the summer of 2025, they basically pulled the plug on the traditional mall-store model in the United States. They couldn't keep up with the sheer speed of Shein or the ultra-low prices of Temu. The CEO of Authentic Brands, Jamie Salter, even admitted publicly that buying Forever 21 was probably the "biggest mistake" he ever made. That's a pretty heavy statement for a guy who buys billion-dollar companies for breakfast.
Who actually calls the shots today?
As of early 2026, here is how the "ownership" breaks down in plain English:
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- Authentic Brands Group: They own the trademark. If you see a Forever 21 logo, they get a cut.
- Catalyst Brands: This is a newer player. In late 2024/early 2025, SPARC Group (the old operator) merged with JCPenney to form Catalyst Brands.
- Third-Party Licensees: Because the U.S. stores mostly liquidated, the "brand" now lives on through other companies. For example, a company called Unique Brands now handles the U.S. website, while Mark Edwards Apparel deals with the women's wholesale side.
What Happened to the Founders?
You might remember the story of Do Won and Jin Sook Chang. They were the South Korean immigrants who started the whole thing in 1984 with $11,000 and a tiny shop in Los Angeles called Fashion 21.
They are officially out.
When the first bankruptcy hit in 2019, the Chang family lost control of their empire. It was a classic case of growing too fast and staying too loyal to big, expensive mall spaces while the rest of the world moved to shopping on their phones. They went from being worth billions to watching their "forever" dream get sold off for about $81 million—a fraction of what it used to be worth.
Why the Ownership Structure Matters to You
You might be thinking, "Who cares who owns it as long as I can buy a cheap shirt?"
Well, it changes where you find the clothes. Since the 2025 liquidation of the 350+ U.S. stores, Forever 21 isn't really a "store" anymore. It's a "label."
Because Simon Property Group and Brookfield (the mall owners) were part of the ownership group, they tried to keep the stores open to fill space in their malls. But once that failed, the brand pivoted. Now, you’re more likely to see Forever 21 clothes inside JCPenney locations or sold through third-party websites.
The "Shein" Factor
In a weird twist of "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em," Shein actually took an equity stake in SPARC Group back in 2023. This meant Forever 21 clothes started appearing on Shein’s website, and Shein started doing pop-up shops inside Forever 21 stores. It was a bizarre marriage of the old-school mall king and the new-school internet queen.
The Future of the Brand
Forever 21 isn't "dead," but the version of it you grew up with is gone. It's effectively a digital-first brand now.
Authentic Brands Group is very good at keeping brands alive on life support by licensing the name to whoever can sell it most efficiently. You'll still see the name in South America, Asia, and Europe where the local operators are doing better than the U.S. branch did.
What to do next
If you’re a fan of the brand or a business geek following the retail apocalypse, here’s the move:
- Check JCPenney: If you want to see the clothes in person, that’s your best bet now that the standalone mega-stores are gone.
- Watch the IPO: Authentic Brands Group has been flirting with going public for years. If they finally do, Forever 21's fate will be buried in their SEC filings.
- Use the App: The ownership has made it clear that "Forever 21" is now an e-commerce play. The website and app are where the newest designs land first.
The era of the three-story mall palace is over. Forever 21 is now just another name in a corporate portfolio, managed by people who specialize in "brand vibes" rather than floor sets and fitting rooms.