Six retail stores – one of which still has a presence in the Chautauqua Mall – are merging to form a new organization.

JCPenney and the SPARC Group are forming Catalyst Brands. Other SPARC Group brands include Aeropostale, Brooks Brothers, Eddie Bauer, Lucky Brand and Nautica.

Catalyst Brands launches with more than $9 billion of revenue, 1,800 store locations, 60,000 employees and $1 billion of liquidity and is poised to generate significant strategic and operational value. The combined Catalyst Brands organization is a joint venture formed in an all-equity transaction between JCPenney and SPARC Group, with shareholders Simon Property Group, Brookfield Corporation, Authentic Brands Group and Shein. Simon Property Group is the former owner of the Chautauqua Mall.

In addition, Catalyst Brands has sold the U.S. operations of Reebok and is exploring strategic options for the operations of Forever 21.

Marc Rosen, formerly the chief executive officer of JCPenney, has become CEO of Catalyst Brands. There are three brand CEOs who will oversee the portfolio that report to Rosen. Michelle Wlazlo, formerly the chief merchandising and supply chain officer of JCPenney, has been promoted to Brand CEO of JCPenney. Natalie Levy continues her role as Brand CEO of Aéropostale, Lucky Brand and Nautica and Ken Ohashi will continue leading Brooks Brothers and has assumed responsibility of Eddie Bauer in his new role as Brand CEO of both brands. Kevin Harper, formerly an executive with Walmart, will join Catalyst Brands as chief operating officer. Marisa Thalberg, formerly the consulting chief marketing and brand officer of JCPenney, has become the chief customer and marketing officer of Catalyst Brands. Additional leadership appointments can be found here.

“Catalyst Brands brings together the rich heritage of six unique brands with modern energy and a new vision for success. The word ‘catalyst’ reflects our drive to accelerate innovation and energy and amplify the impact of this powerhouse portfolio. Together, we bring scale, expertise and broad appeal to customers across America,” Rosen said. “For us, customers are at the heart of what we do. We have a shared belief that customers deserve fashion and style of great quality for any and every moment in life. We will leverage our resources and best-in-class industry talent to grow our brands further.”

High debt and the COVID-19 pandemic led JCPenney to file bankruptcy in 2020. When the store emerged from bankruptcy in December 2020 it had restructured its debt and closed about 200 stores, though the Chautauqua Mall store remained open. Simon Properties and Brookfield Asset Management acquired JCPenney for $800 million.

JCPenney is one of the few anchor retail stores remaining in the mall as it has shifted toward human services and restaurants, with mall officials reaching out to Chautauqua County officials asking the county to move its south county offices into the space formerly occupied by Sears.

“Our relationships with more than 60 million customers and the deep data we have create a compelling consumer value proposition across our brands. We can design a more personalized shopping experience, offer unified loyalty and credit card programs, and ultimately, cross-sell more effectively. That’s one example of the many benefits we’ll see in this combination,” continued Rosen. “With a clean balance sheet, we’re in great position to move forward.”