" The company was founded in Los Angeles in 1984 by two young Korean immigrants; Do Won Chang and his wife Jin Sook Chang, under the name Fashion 21. They had been in the states only three years when the company opened their first store (900 square feet) in Highland Park, California (coincidentally, a five-minute drive from my house), a neighborhood located about five minutes north of downtown Los Angeles. The store produced approximately $700,000 during it's first year and still remains in the same location to this day. It is by far the most raggedy looking one in the chain, but I think they keep it for sentimental reasons.
They imported trendy fashion designs from Korea, initially targeting the Korean-American community.
During the next five years, they expanded slowly, eventually opening ten additional non-mall stores in California ranging from about 1,000 to 5,000 square feet. Their 11th store was their first mall store and have since expanded throughout the United States, primarily in shopping malls.
Today, the largest store in the chain is quite big comparatively, over 150,000 square feet. The privately-held retailer has grown to over 500 stores in the United States, Canada, Europe, United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, Philippines, Israel, China, Latin America and Hong Kong. Their estimated sales are in excess of $3 billion annually. All of their price points are under $60.
The husband and wife team's personal net worth has been estimated by Forbes to be $4+ billion.
Chang's two daughters, Linda (30) and Esther (25), joined the business as heads of marketing and visual merchandising a few years ago. Nice to have connections.
(L to R, Esther, Do, Linda)
I've heard the Chang family has a reputation of not being the easiest people to work for. Huffpo just published: 9 CEOs With The Worst Reputations, naming their CEO.
A detailed history of the company can be found at Forever 21 and Forever 21's Fast (and Loose) Fashion Empire."
#huffpo
#forever21
#visual
#imports
They imported trendy fashion designs from Korea, initially targeting the Korean-American community.
During the next five years, they expanded slowly, eventually opening ten additional non-mall stores in California ranging from about 1,000 to 5,000 square feet. Their 11th store was their first mall store and have since expanded throughout the United States, primarily in shopping malls.
Today, the largest store in the chain is quite big comparatively, over 150,000 square feet. The privately-held retailer has grown to over 500 stores in the United States, Canada, Europe, United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, Philippines, Israel, China, Latin America and Hong Kong. Their estimated sales are in excess of $3 billion annually. All of their price points are under $60.
The husband and wife team's personal net worth has been estimated by Forbes to be $4+ billion.
Chang's two daughters, Linda (30) and Esther (25), joined the business as heads of marketing and visual merchandising a few years ago. Nice to have connections.
I've heard the Chang family has a reputation of not being the easiest people to work for. Huffpo just published: 9 CEOs With The Worst Reputations, naming their CEO.
A detailed history of the company can be found at Forever 21 and Forever 21's Fast (and Loose) Fashion Empire."
#huffpo
#forever21
#visual
#imports
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