Episode 27: The Growing Role of Private Equity in Fashion

If you caught Episode 25, you know the story: approximately 250 Guatemalan garment workers are still owed $500,000 in severance from Lucky Brand after the closure of the Industrial Hana factory. But what started as a case study in wage theft quickly revealed something bigger—how private equity is transforming fashion supply chains behind the scenes.

In this follow-up episode, Manpreet Kaur Kalra reconnects with Anna Canning of Partners for Dignity & Rights to peel back the layers of fashion’s financial structure. Together, they trace how corporate ownership is intentionally opaque, and how firms like Authentic Brands Group are profiting by fragmenting responsibility. From bankruptcies and brand buyouts to complex licensing deals, together, we unpack how private equity is redefining who owns what—and why that matters for the future of corporate accountability. 

We talk about the companies you don’t see on tags — the ones pulling the strings behind brand names by diving into: 

  • How private equity uses debt, licensing, and outsourcing to extract value

  • The growing trend of intellectual property empires

  • Why bankruptcy is now a business tactic, not a failure

  • What Forever 21, Shaquille O’Neal, and mall landlords have to do with all of it

Private equity isn’t just reshaping fashion—it’s financializing daily life. From healthcare to the roads we drive on to legacy fashion brands, this episode is a deep dive into the real cost of profit-maximizing business models—and the urgent need for structural accountability.

“If the goal is to maximize returns on investment at any costs, then the working people at the bottom are always the ones who pay.” — Anna Canning

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About the Case

While in Episode 25, we dissected unauthorized subcontracting by looking at the case of Lucky Brand, here, we dive deeper into some of the other unrelenting extractive financial strategies hidden behind the public-facing brands that make up the U.S. marketplace.

“It doesn't take long when you're talking to people who have studied this model before they start using analogies like capitalism on steroids.” — Anna Canning

Lucky Brand may be the name on the clothes, but the business behind it is anything but straightforward. Today, the brand is owned by Authentic Brands Group, a massive licensing firm with a growing portfolio of fashion, celebrity likenesses, and legacy IP. But it doesn't handle operations. That job falls to SPARC Group, a joint venture between Authentic, Shein, and Simon Property Group—the largest mall owner in the U.S. Earlier this year, SPARC merged with JCPenney to form Catalyst Brands, an even more complex entity overseeing the logistics and outsourcing of dozens of retail brands.

The result? A tangled web of shared ownership where risk is passed down the chain—and workers, like those at Industrial Hana, are left unpaid.

What happens when brands file for bankruptcy, but relaunches within months? When landlords become owners? When wage theft is baked into the business model?

“The more we name the players, trace the structures, and shine light on what's designed to stay hidden, the more we can open the door for accountability and real change.” — Manpreet Kaur Kalra

Meet Our Guest

Anna Canning leads the Worker Rights team at Partners for Dignity and Rights. Prior to that, she was with the Worker-driven Social Responsibility Network. Throughout her career, Anna has led creative campaigns taking on corporate power and the fairwashing used to cover corporate abuses. Anna has over 20 years of experience working in supply chains and in movements for food justice and human rights.

📌 Partners for Dignity and Rights is a non-profit that advocates for human rights, especially the rights to dignified work, housing, and public education.

📚 Resources & References

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Manpreet Kalra