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A12 BUSINESS
Friday 25 august 2023

Shein and Forever 21 team up in hopes

of expanding reach of both fast-

fashion retailers

NEW YORK (AP) — Fast
fashion retailers Shein and
Forever 21 are going into
business together.
Under a partnership agree-
ment announced Thurs-
day, the Chinese-founded
Shein will acquire about
one-third interest in Sparc
Group, Forever 21’s opera-
tor. Sparc will also become
a minority shareholder in
Shein.
The deal is expected to
expand Forever 21’s distri- A page from the Shein website is shown in this photo, in New
bution on Shein’s global e- York, Friday, June 23, 2023.
commerce platform, which Associated Press
has attracted 150 million tions worldwide and online. Group and mall operator
online users. The announcement did not Simon Property Group. Be-
In turn, the partnership disclose financial details of yond the U.S.-based For-
“also offers the opportunity the deal. The Wall Street ever 21 which was bought
to test” Shein product sales Journal first reported the out of bankruptcy just
and returns in physical For- deal between Shein and three years ago Sparc also
ever 21 stores across the Sparc Thursday. Sparc is a makes and distributes ap-
U.S., the companies said in joint venture that includes parel for brands like Aéro-
a joint release. Forever 21 brand development com- postale, Eddie Bauer and
has more than 540 loca- pany Authentic Brands Reebook.q

Summer spending at bars & restaurants

surges as Americans shrug off inflation,

recession fears

By DAMIAN J. TROISE
AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Ameri-
cans didn’t let persistent
inflation and lingering wor-
ries about a recession cut
into summer spending on
eating and drinking out.
Retails sales at restaurants
and bars surged from May
through July compared
with a year ago, despite
prices remaining relatively
People walk through an area where restaurants operate elevated for restaurants
outdoor spaces for dining that spread onto sidewalks and and bars. Sales in the sec-
streets as part of continued COVID-19 economic impact tor jumped 11.8% in July
mitigation efforts, Oct. 3, 2020, in New York. and 9.5% in June from a
Associated Press
year ago, according to the
Commerce Department.
Inflation has been gener-
ally falling and broadly
relieving pressure on con-
sumers, but prices for food
and alcohol outside of
the home has remained
relatively stable. Consum-
ers also seemingly ignored
recession concerns that
hung over the economy
for most of the year.q