Retail Brands That No Longer Exist (And Who Owned Them)

Roughly 8,200 retail locations shut their doors in 2025, about 12% more than 2024, according to Coresight Research. Forever 21 closed 500 stores. Party City closed 700. Joann closed 800. Big Lots closed hundreds. Rite Aid shuttered locations across the country. These were not small, unknown brands. They were chains that once defined American retail.

Each one had an owner. Each owner made decisions that led to the collapse. Some were private equity firms that loaded the companies with debt. Some were management teams that failed to adapt to e-commerce. Some were brands that emerged from bankruptcy once and could not survive a second trip.

Forever 21: $1.58 Billion in Debt, 500 Stores Gone

Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy in March 2025, the second time in six years. The fast-fashion retailer entered bankruptcy with $1.58 billion in debt, after losing more than $400 million over the previous three years. It lost $150 million in 2024 alone and was projected to lose approximately $180 million in 2025.

Reuters reported that the company would wind down its domestic operations, shuttering about 350 US stores. CNN reported the total at 500 stores. The chain had previously filed for bankruptcy in 2019, closed 200 stores, and emerged under the ownership of Authentic Brands Group, Simon Property Group, and Brookfield Property Group.

The second bankruptcy was different. There was no exit plan. The rise of e-commerce competitors like Shein and Temu, combined with the slow death of the American mall, hurt apparel companies across the board. Forever 21's core customer moved to online fast-fashion. The stores became irrelevant.

Authentic Brands Group, which owns the Forever 21 intellectual property, has not announced a revival plan. The brand may continue as an online-only entity or through licensing deals, but the physical retail presence is gone.

Party City: Two Bankruptcies, Zero Stores

Party City filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2023, emerged in October 2023 after shedding nearly $1 billion in debt, then filed for Chapter 11 again in December 2024. This time, it liquidated. All 700 stores closed.

CEO Barry Litwin told employees in December 2024: "It's really important for you to know that we've done everything possible that we could to try to avoid this outcome. Unfortunately, it's necessary to commence a winddown process immediately."

Retail Dive reported that Party City faced competition from specialty pop-up stores like Spirit Halloween and mass merchants like Target and Amazon. Between July 2023 and July 2024, comparative store sales fell 9.5%, while sales in its consumer products division declined 24.8%. The company had about $400 million in debt obligations when it filed.

Party City was 40 years old. It was once a leader in the celebrations space. The brand is now owned by its creditors. The leases for nearly 700 locations are being auctioned off. The intellectual property may be sold to a brand management company, but as of mid-2026, no revival has been announced.

Joann: 80 Years, 800 Stores, Gone

Joann, the fabrics and crafts retailer, closed all 800 stores in February 2025 after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy twice in under 12 months. The closure ended more than 80 years in business and left 19,000 employees without jobs.

Interim CEO Michael Prendergast said in a press release: "Since becoming a private company in April, the Board and management team have continued to execute on top and bottom-line initiatives to manage costs and drive value." It was not enough.

Joann was acquired by private equity firm Leonard Green & Partners in 2011 in a $1.6 billion leveraged buyout. The deal loaded the company with debt. By the time it filed for bankruptcy, the debt burden made it impossible to invest in e-commerce, store modernization, or competitive pricing. The crafting boom during COVID provided a temporary boost, but the company could not sustain it.

The brand's intellectual property was acquired by GA Group and the Prentice Capital Management affiliate in a bankruptcy auction. They initially planned to continue operating online, but the website has since shut down. The Joann brand is effectively dead.

Big Lots: Narrowly Saved, But Shrunken

Big Lots filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2024. It initially announced that all remaining stores would shutter. Then in December 2024, it struck a deal with Gordon Brothers Retail Partners that saved hundreds of stores.

The deal transferred approximately 200-400 stores to Variety Wholesalers, a discount retail operator. The remaining stores closed. Big Lots had operated approximately 1,400 stores at its peak. The brand survives, but in a dramatically reduced form.

Big Lots was hurt by the same forces that killed the other retailers on this list: inflation, a pullback in discretionary spending, and competition from online retailers. The company also struggled with a merchandising strategy that moved away from closeout bargains toward conventional retail, alienating its core customer base.

Rite Aid: The Pharmacy Chain That Collapsed

Rite Aid filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2023. The pharmacy chain closed hundreds of stores as part of its restructuring. CNN listed Rite Aid among the major chains that "went bust" in 2025.

Rite Aid's collapse was driven by a combination of debt, opioid litigation, and competition from CVS and Walgreens. The company had acquired the Brooks and Eckerd pharmacy chains in 2007, taking on significant debt. It never fully recovered. Opioid lawsuits added billions in potential liability.

The company emerged from bankruptcy in 2024 with a reduced store count and new ownership. But the brand is a shadow of its former self. Rite Aid operated approximately 2,100 stores at its peak. The current count is significantly lower.

Retail Brands That No Longer Exist

Why These Retail Brands Failed

The failures share common patterns:

• Private equity debt: Joann was loaded with $1.6 billion in debt from a leveraged buyout. The debt burden prevented investment in e-commerce and store modernization. Party City emerged from bankruptcy with less debt but could not generate enough revenue to survive.
• E-commerce disruption: Forever 21 lost customers to Shein and Temu. Party City lost customers to Amazon. Joann lost customers to online craft retailers. The pattern is the same: physical retailers that failed to build competitive online operations.
• Mall decline: Forever 21 was heavily dependent on mall traffic. As American malls declined, so did Forever 21's sales. The company could not find alternative locations fast enough.
• Discretionary spending decline: Inflation and economic uncertainty caused consumers to cut back on discretionary purchases. Party supplies, crafts, and fast fashion are all discretionary categories.
• Competition from mass merchants: Target, Amazon, and Walmart expanded their offerings in party supplies, crafts, and discount retail. The specialty chains could not compete on price or convenience.

What This Means for Consumers

When a retail brand disappears, the impact is immediate. Employees lose jobs. Communities lose stores. Customers lose access to products. The closure of 8,200 stores in 2025 affected millions of people.

The brands that survive are the ones that adapted. Target invested in e-commerce and same-day pickup. Walmart built a massive online business. Costco maintained its membership model. The brands that failed were the ones that relied on physical stores and did not invest in digital alternatives.

If your favorite retailer is showing warning signs (store closures, bankruptcy filings, debt restructuring), start looking for alternatives. The brands on this list did not die suddenly. They declined over years, and the signs were visible.

FAQ

Which retail brands closed in 2025? Forever 21, Party City, Joann, and Big Lots were among the major retail chains that closed stores or shut down entirely in 2025. Approximately 8,200 retail locations closed in 2025, about 12% more than 2024, according to Coresight Research.

Why did Forever 21 go bankrupt? Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy in March 2025 with $1.58 billion in debt, after losing more than $400 million over three years. The company was hurt by competition from online fast-fashion retailers like Shein and Temu, declining mall traffic, and the slow death of the American mall. It was the second bankruptcy in six years.

Who owned Joann when it closed? Joann was acquired by private equity firm Leonard Green & Partners in 2011 in a $1.6 billion leveraged buyout. The debt from the buyout burdened the company for over a decade. Joann filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy twice in 12 months and closed all 800 stores in February 2025.

Is Party City coming back? As of mid-2026, no revival of Party City has been announced. The company filed for bankruptcy twice (January 2023 and December 2024) and liquidated all 700 stores. The leases for nearly 700 locations are being auctioned off. The intellectual property may be sold to a brand management company, but no deal has been disclosed.

Sources

• CNN: The retailers we lost in 2025 (December 2025)
• Reuters: Forever 21 files for bankruptcy again, to start liquidation sales (March 2025)
• Business Insider: More Than 4,100 Stores Are Closing This Year (2025)
• Retail Dive: Party City to close all stores in bankruptcy (December 2024)
• Fox Business: Party City, Big Lots, Macy's and Joann enter final days of store closing sales (March 2025)
• Coresight Research: US store closure data (2025)