Forever 21, the fast fashion retailer, has had a pretty bumpy entrance and journey in mainland China. It first tried to get into the Chinese market in 2008 but left just a year later. Then, in 2011, when the nation’s fashion market really started taking off, the company tried again with 11 brick-and-mortar stores across the country. In 2019, though, the brand exited several markets (China being one of them) and filed for bankruptcy.
Since then, the company has been bought by Authentic Brands Group, which signed a licensing partnership agreement with Lasonic Electric Xusheng Co. Now, it’s announced that it’s launching a new physical store later this month in the Jingjiang Impression City shopping center in Taizhou in the Jiangsu province.
Key comments:
“It’s clear within the fast fashion space there has been somewhat of a shift towards nimble domestic fashion brands, so if anything it is harder now for international fast fashion to compete here than in the past. It will be difficult to claw away market share as most Chinese consumers either haven’t heard of the brand or don’t really know what it stands for,” said Ben Cavender, China Market Research Group managing director.
