is one of Forever 21's largest landlords, with 98 Forever 21 stores at its malls and outlet centers.In 2016, Simon was part of a group that put forth $243 million to save tween and teen apparel retailer Aeropostale out of bankruptcy court. "When you look at Aero, they have been able to turn that around," said Alexander Goldfarb, Sandler O'Neill & Partners managing director and senior REIT analyst. "I see no reason why Forever 21 doesn't work.
Simon has since 2016 told analysts that it invested about $25 million in Aeropostale and has received about $13 million back. It grew Aeropostale's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to $80 million from a loss of $100 million three years ago. "Our group's successful turnaround at Aero ... gives us confidence with our ability to do the same with Forever 21," CEO Simon said on an earnings call earlier this month. "Forever 21 is a storied and widely recognized brand with over $2 billion in global sales. We believe Forever 21, similar to Aero, presents a very interesting re-positioning opportunity.
Simon announced Monday that it agreed to buy Taubman, which runs about two dozen high-end properties — including Beverly Center in Los Angeles and The Mall at Short Hills in Short Hills, New Jersey — for a price tag of $3.6 billion. Taubman also has 21 Forever 21 stores, court filings show. "It made all the economic sense in the world for Simon to buy Taubman," said Vince Tibone, a lead retail analyst at commercial real estate services firm Green Street Advisors. Similar to Simon's proposal to buy Forever 21 being a steal, he said, this is going to be done at a "fair price," especially given the selloff over the past year in Taubman shares.Simon said for Taubman it would be paying $52.50 a share, or a 51% premium to where Taubman shares closed Feb.
Malls are paying taxes that local governments use to pay for Amazon’s tax breaks.
I don't think this the right move. I feel that malls should be moving to positioning themselves as entertainment and dining centers to turns themselves into destinations for people to go to.
Imagine if they go the same tax cuts Amazon gets from their local government.
Malls will make a comeback 🏬
I never go to the mall