Forever 21 Opens First Store in Latin America
Los Angeles retailer Forever 21 Inc. has been on a major expansion spree despite a stubborn downturn in retail sales.
The 25-year-old chain, which caters to young women looking for value-oriented fast fashion, opened its first Latin American store in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Aug. 1.
Hundreds of shoppers lined up the night before to be the first to enter the two-story, 38,000-square-foot emporium in the Plaza Las Americas Shopping Mall, one of the largest in the Caribbean.
Forever 21 is stocking the store with an array of its apparel categories. The racks are filled not only with Forever 21 goods but also its men’s and women’s casual line, Heritage 1981; its couture line, Twelve by Twelve; its contemporary line, Love 21; and its plus-size line, Faith21.
“We are so proud to have brought 340 jobs to the community, and the results are incredible,” Linda Chang, the retailer’s senior manager of marketing, said in a statement.
In the last year, Forever 21 has been expanding as other stores closed. It is taking over several vacant store fronts once occupied by Mervyns and Gottschalks, two California retailers that folded after filing for bankruptcy protection in the last year.
Forever 21, founded by Don Chang with one modest 900-square-foot outlet in Los Angeles’ Highland Park area, is changing its retail format, moving into larger stores instead of concentrating on smaller mall stores. It also is expanding aggressively into Asia. —Deborah Belgum
