Justice (store)

Last updated
Justice
Type Subsidiary
Industry Retail
Founded2004;19 years ago (2004)
Headquarters New Albany, Ohio, U.S.
Brands
  • Justice
Parent
Website www.shopjustice.com

Justice is a clothing brand sold exclusively through Walmart targeting the tween girl market. In 2020, it became a brand owned by the private equity firm Bluestar Alliance.

Contents

Justice makes apparel, underwear, sleepwear, swimwear, lifestyle, accessories, and personal care products for girls age roughly 6–12. Justice began with operating retail stores between the late 1980s and the late 2010s. It began as Limited Too becoming Justice during 2008 to 2010. [1]

Justice also makes licensed merchandise from popular franchises, which have in the past included iCarly , Victorious , Wizards of Waverly Place , and Liv and Maddie .

Justice makes girls size 6 through size 20, [2] as well as plus sizes for size 10–24. [2] Plus sized dresses, tops and jackets are also available. [2]

The brand was purchased by Bluestar Alliance in 2020. Justice began being sold exclusively at Walmart. Justice products are also available for purchase through Walmart online. Since August 2021 Walmart Canada began carrying Justice line. [3]

History

Former Tween Brands corporate logo, 2006-2009 Tween Brands (logo).gif
Former Tween Brands corporate logo, 2006–2009

Limited Too was created by The Limited, Inc. in 1987 as a younger girls/infants version of The Limited. In 1996, a new senior management team refocused Limited Too into a preteen girls fashion store. In 1999, Limited Too, Inc. spun off to establish a strong and independent brand identity.

From 2001 to 2003 the company operated the Mishmash chain that targeted 15- to 20-year-old women and sold apparel, accessories, and gifts and competed head-to-head with chains like Gadzooks, Wet Seal, and the women's businesses of Abercrombie & Fitch, Hollister Co., and American Eagle Outfitters. The chain folded in 2003 because Too Inc. felt that they knew and understood the preteen customer better. Committed to this focus, Too Inc. launched the first Justice: Just for Girls stores in January 2004; many of the early Justice stores were in converted Mishmash stores. [4]

On July 10, 2006, Too Inc. completed its name change to Tween Brands, Inc., and began trading on the NYSE under the symbol, 'TWB'.

On June 25, 2009, Dress Barn announced that it would buy Tween Brands, Inc, in a friendly acquisition. [5] In 2010, Tween Brands began a boys clothing line entitled “Brothers”. [6]

On January 1, 2011, Dress Barn completed its reorganization into Ascena Retail Group, Inc. trading on the NASDAQ under the stock ticker symbol ASNA. [7]

The Justice brand outsold the much larger Walmart and Target stores in the girls' apparel category during the fourth quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. [8]

On February 17, 2015, Ascena Retail Group, Inc. announced that the Brothers brand would be discontinued due to poor sales and recognition. [9] Justice later added more product lines in response to changing consumer tastes, including Justice Active inspired by athleisure trends, with products endorsed by Mackenzie Ziegler, as well as JoJo Siwa clothing and accessories. [10]

In 2018, Justice launched an original series of graphic novels and toys called Ultra Squad designed to be empowering to tween girls; the book series was well received and is currently on its fourth volume. [11]

In July 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak, Ascena Retail Group declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and stated that a 'significant number' of Justice stores would close permanently. Later on, it was announced that all remaining Justice stores were to be closed permanently by the end of 2020, and that Ascena Retail Group was exploring a possible sale of the Justice brand with potential suitors, the brand said it would continue to sell apparel through its digital format. [12]

On November 11, 2020, Ascena Retail Group announced that the Justice brand had been acquired by Bluestar Alliance LLC. [13]

In 2021, Justice began being sold exclusively at Walmart. Justice products are also available for purchase through Walmart online and the Justice brand digital store. [14] [15] They also made a deal with Nogin, who planned to re-transform Justice's e-commerce platform to reduce shipping costs and add AI-generated content to its website. [16] However, in December 2023, Nogin declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy, blaming some of its retail partners that required Nogin to purchase their inventory. Justice's inventory, in particular, affected Nogin with larger amounts of older inventory and drained the company's cash. [17]

Criticism

Justice was examined in the study “’Putting on’ Sexiness: A Content Analysis of the Presence of Sexualizing Characteristics in Girls' Clothing”. [18] A total of 650 clothing pieces were analyzed into four groups defined as childish, sexual, both childish and sexual and neither childish nor sexual. [18] Of the clothing documented, 413 pieces or 63.5% of the clothing was defined as childish, 12 pieces or 1.8% of the clothing was defined as sexual, and 225 pieces or 34.6% of the clothing was considered both childish and sexual. [18] No clothing from Justice was considered neither childish nor sexual. [18]

Related Research Articles

Lane Bryant Inc. is an American women's apparel and intimates specialty retailer focusing on plus-size clothing. The company began in 1904 with maternity designs created by Lena Himmelstein Bryant Malsin. Lane Bryant, Inc., is the largest plus-size retailer in the United States. As of 2022, the chain consists of 448 stores in 46 U.S. states. Lane Bryant, Inc. is not affiliated with Lane Bryant catalog, which was spun off as a separate business in 1993.

A discount store or discounter offers a retail format in which products are sold at prices that are in principle lower than an actual or supposed "full retail price". Discounters rely on bulk purchasing and efficient distribution to keep down costs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PLBY Group</span> US global media and lifestyle company

PLBY Group, Inc. is an American global media and lifestyle company founded by Hugh Hefner as Playboy Enterprises, Inc. to oversee the Playboy magazine and related assets. Its headquarters are in Los Angeles, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aéropostale (company)</span> American clothing retailer

Aéropostale Inc., is an American shopping mall–based retailer of casual apparel and accessories, principally aimed at young adults and teenagers. Aéropostale maintains control over its proprietary brands by designing, sourcing, marketing, and selling all of its own merchandise. The company sells via Aéropostale stores in the United States and through its e-commerce site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PVH Corp.</span> American clothing company

PVH Corp., formerly known as the Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, is an American clothing company which owns brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Warner's, Olga and True & Co. The company also licenses brands such as Kenneth Cole New York and Michael Kors. PVH is partly named after Dutch immigrant John Manning van Heusen, who in 1910 invented a new process that fused cloth on a curve.

The Izod Corporation is an American midrange clothing company that produces dressy-casual clothing, sportswear for men, and footwear and accessories. It is a division of Authentic Brands Group, and is currently marketed and manufactured by Centric Brands under a long-term licensing agreement. Other Izod classics include the Harrington jacket G-9 model and V-neck and cardigan sweaters. Today, the Izod brand competes most directly with the similarly priced Chaps brand owned by Ralph Lauren Corporation, while competing more indirectly with U.S. Polo Assn.

Le Château Inc. is a fashion company, currently owned by Suzy's Inc. The chain was founded in 1959 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and designed, imported, and retailed women's and men's apparel, accessories, and footwear. In 2015, the company generated sales of about CA$237 million. The company operates in 57 Suzy Shier stores, before bankruptcy, they sold directly to customers from 123 retail stores in Canada and 5 in the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann Inc.</span> American clothing company

Ann Inc. is an American group of specialty apparel retail chain stores for women. The company headquartered in New York City and currently operates as a subsidiary of Ascena Retail Group. The stores offer classic-styled suits, separates, dresses, shoes and accessories. The brand is marketed under five divisions: Ann Taylor, Loft, Lou & Grey, Ann Taylor Factory, and Loft Outlet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ascena Retail Group</span> American corporation

Ascena Retail Group, Inc., is an American retailer of women's clothing. Ascena also owns Lane Bryant clothing store brand, and is the parent company of Ann Inc., operator of Ann Taylor and Loft stores.

Charming Shoppes is a specialty and plus size clothing retail holding company based in Bensalem, Pennsylvania; a suburb of Philadelphia. Its subsidiaries include Lane Bryant, Cacique, Fashion Bug, and Catherines Plus. Clothes were sold from over 2300 retail stores in the United States, as well as numerous catalogs and online sites. In 2012, the company and assets were acquired by Ascena Retail Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carter's</span> American retail company

Carter's, Inc. is a major American designer and marketer of children's apparel. It was founded in 1865 by William Carter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nine West</span> American online footwear retailer

Nine West, also known as 9 West, is an American online fashion retailer which is based in White Plains, New York. It was founded in 1983 and closed its brick and mortar stores business in 2018. Its products continue to be sold at other retailers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Starter (clothing line)</span> American clothing manufacturer

Starter, Inc. is an American clothing manufacturer, focusing on major league sports teams. Starter's current licenses include MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL teams. Non-sports agreements include a partnership with Coca-Cola.

ModCloth is a Los Angeles based online retailer of indie and vintage-inspired women’s clothing.

The Limited is an American clothing brand sold exclusively through Belk. The Limited began with operating retail stores between the early 1960s and the late 2010s. In 2017, it became a brand owned by the private equity firm Sycamore Partners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gap Inc.</span> American multinational clothing and accessories retailer

The Gap, Inc., commonly known as Gap Inc. or Gap, is an American worldwide clothing and accessories retailer. Gap was founded in 1969 by Donald Fisher and Doris F. Fisher and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. The company operates four primary divisions: Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy, and Athleta. Gap Inc. is the largest specialty retailer in the United States, and is 3rd in total international locations, behind Inditex Group and H&M. As of early 2023, Gap employs about 95,000 people.

Dressbarn is a digitally native retailer which specializes in women's casual dresses, leisure wear, accessories, and workwear. Dressbarn began with operating retail stores between the early 1960s and late 2010s. In 2020, it became a brand owned by the private equity firm Retail Ecommerce Ventures.

Sycamore Partners is a private equity firm based in New York specializing in retail and consumer investments. The firm has approximately $10 billion in aggregate committed capital.

Limited Too was a clothing and lifestyle retailer, and current brand, targeting the tween girl market, formerly owned by Tween Brands, Inc.. Since 2015, the brand has been owned by Bluestar Alliance, LLC, having lain dormant for six years after the store bearing its name converted to Justice.

References

  1. ↑ "News Releases". Phx.corporate-ir.net. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  2. 1 2 3 "Club Justice − Earn Points on Every Purchase!".
  3. ↑ "Walmart Canada announces new partnership with tween brand Justice - just in time for back to school".
  4. ↑ "News Releases". Phx.corporate-ir.net. Archived from the original on 2004-08-11. Retrieved 2020-08-13.
  5. ↑ "News Releases". Phx.corporate-ir.net. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  6. ↑ Eaton, Dan (September 20, 2012). "Justice Adding Boys Clothing at More Stores After successful test Run". Columbus Business First. Retrieved March 30, 2016.
  7. ↑ "The Dress Barn, Inc. Completes Delaware Holding Company Reorganization into Ascena Retail Group, Inc". Business Wire. 2011-01-03. Archived from the original on 2016-05-27. Retrieved 2012-01-28.
  8. ↑ Klara, Robert. "It's Not Easy Being Tween", Adweek , 27 June 2012 (accessed 15 December 2012)
  9. ↑ Ascena Retail Group, Inc. (2015-02-17). "Ascena Retail Group, Inc. Back Its Brothers Brand". Ascena Retail Group, Inc. Retrieved 2015-02-18.
  10. ↑ Juneau, Jen. "Back to Cool! Peek Into Mackenzie Ziegler’s New Dance-Inspired Justice Activewear Line", People magazine, August 31, 2017; and "Mackenzie Ziegler Designs New Spring Clothing Collection in Collaboration with Justice", NASDAQ Global Newswire, February 26, 2018
  11. ↑ "Justice Clothing Unveils Graphic Novel Series "Ultra Squad" Under its New Entertainment Division, Justice Studios" (Press release). GlobeNewsWire. 2018-11-01. Retrieved 2020-08-14.
  12. ↑ https://www.retaildive.com/news/ascena-moves-to-sell-justice-tween-brand/586992/
  13. ↑ "ascena retail group Announces Justice Brand Holdings Wins Auction to Acquire Justice Intellectual Property". 2020-11-11. Retrieved 2020-12-03.
  14. ↑ "Walmart Announces New Collaboration with Tween Brand Justice – Just in Time for Back to School" (Press release). 15 July 2021.
  15. ↑ https://www.nj.com/business/2021/07/walmart-to-add-tween-clothing-brand-justice-to-its-stores.html
  16. ↑ "Justice results go live". Nogin. September 9, 2021. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Ex-SPAC Nogin Goes Bankrupt, Plans Sale to B. Riley Unit". Bloomberg. December 6, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  18. 1 2 3 4 Goodin, S. (2011). "Putting on Sexiness: A Content Analysis of the Presence of Sexualizing Characteristics in Girl's Clothing". Sex Roles. 65 (1–2): 1–12. doi:10.1007/s11199-011-9966-8. S2CID   144534173.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.