The Eugene Forever 21 location is not expected to close in spite of corporate bankruptcy filing, but the Valley River Center location is currently listed as number 141 on their possible closing list, according to a report by CNBC.
Although the local Forever 21 has been said to be closing by the Register Guard, employees at the location said that they were not going to close, and that they weren’t aware of any signs of closure any time soon.
Local management said that they were not able to disclose any information about the business, and Valley River Center is not expecting any shop in the mall to drop, according to the mall’s management department.
Even though the location in Eugene is considered in good standing at the moment, 178 Forever 21 stores are set to close soon after the company filed for Chapter 11 U.S. Bankruptcy, CNN Business reported.
“Essentially, this allows Forever 21 to continue to operate its stores as usual, while the Company takes positive steps to reorganize the business so we can return to profitability,” a Forever 21 press release said. “Filing for bankruptcy protection is a deliberate and decisive step to put us on a successful track for the future.”
Forever 21 isn’t the only ‘fast fashion’ company that’s been struggling to keep people in their stores. Charlotte Russe, Aeropostale, Nine West, Claire’s, Rue21, American Apparel and many others have also filed for bankruptcy in the past five years.
Pew Research discovered that in 2015, 79% of American adults were shopping primarily online. ThreadUp, a popular site for thrift shopping online, found that 64% of women preferred shopping second hand to purchasing through department stores in 2018.
Chasity Felix, a sophomore at the University of Oregon, said that she prefers second-hand shopping rather than retail stores.
“To me, it’s all about the quality,” Felix said. “When you find an item at a thrift store, it’s going to be quality and unique. I shop at places like H&M once in awhile, but clothes from thrift shops are always going to be good quality.”
