Forever 21 is asking landlords for a break on rent as the legacy fast-fashion player’s sales decline and it struggles to keep up with savvier competitors, CNBC has learned.

The retailer, which has more than 380 stores in the U.S., has asked some landlords to cut its rent by as much as 50%, people familiar with the matter told CNBC. 

While the company is facing financial difficulties, it has yet to hire advisors and isn’t considering a second bankruptcy protection filing, the people said. It’s working to restructure its many leases so it can cut costs, they said. 

Forever 21 faces a range of issues that have long plagued its business. It operates in the increasingly saturated fast-fashion market, the people said. They also added that the retailer struggles to manage inventory and understand and respond to its consumers.

The retailer’s struggles come after it filed for bankruptcy protection in 2019 and was later bought by a consortium including brand management company Authentic Brands Group and landlords Simon Property Group and Brookfield Property Partners.

When the company sought bankruptcy protection, it had more than 800 locations globally.

Similar to many retailers, Forever 21′s massive store footprint weighed on its balance sheet when it first filed for bankruptcy protection. The retailer had expanded too quickly during its growth phase, leaving it unable to invest in its supply chain and rapidly respond to changing trends. 

Closing hundreds of stores after filing for bankruptcy protection has not resolved its issues.

Forever 21′s financial position has also hurt the performance of its operator Sparc Group — the joint venture that includes Authentic, Simon and as of last summer, Chinese-linked fast-fashion behemoth Shein. Sparc runs Forever 21′s operations, as well as several other formerly bankrupt retailers, including Aeropostale, Brooks Brothers and Lucky Brand. 

Sparc declined to comment to CNBC. Simon didn’t return a request for comment.

Sparc has been scrutinizing its budgets and contending with its own financial struggles, people familiar with the matter said. 

Many of Sparc’s challenges come from the difficulty of merging numerous legacy brands and attempting to centralize their teams, technology, marketing, e-commerce, sourcing and supply chains, one of the people said. It’s also contended with the issue of running brands that have long operated primarily in malls.

Expensive leases for stores that perform poorly relative to their size can often weigh down retailers’ balance sheets and drain cash.

Forever 21 has consistently paid its vendors late over the last year, according to data from Creditsafe, a business intelligence platform that analyzes companies’ financial, legal and compliance risks. The data shows Forever 21′s payment patterns to vendors have fluctuated, with some bills going more than 70 days past due in late 2023, according to Creditsafe.

Plenty of companies, including many that are healthy, leave bills unpaid for weeks or months, but late payments can also signal larger financial troubles. The industry average hovered between 12 and 13 days past due for the last 12 months, said Creditsafe spokesperson Ragini Bhalla.

In the past, Forever 21′s top rivals included H&M and Zara. These days, its biggest foes are ultra-fast-fashion retailers like Shein and Temu. 

“The speed is almost impossible to compete with. So if you juxtapose any brand that was around 20 years ago to these new, on-demand manufacturing fast-fashion companies … it’s like comparing a mobile phone from 2000 to the newest iPhone. The speed, the quality, everything is just different,” one of the people said. “As soon as someone goes viral in a new outfit on TikTok, Shein is immediately making it and no regular brand can keep up with that.” 

At the ICR conference in January, Authentic Brands CEO Jamie Salter said acquiring Forever 21 was “probably the biggest mistake” of his career, adding he also erred when he failed to recognize the competitive threat posed by Shein and Temu earlier. 

He recalled a conversation he had with Simon’s CEO David Simon, who asked Salter why he wanted to partner with Shein. 

“I said, ‘David, it’s the right decision, we cannot beat them. Their supply chain is too good. They know what’s going on. They’ve figured this out. We need to partner with them,’” Salter said. “So I was the brave one that said, ‘Let’s go partner with these guys.’”

As part of the two retailers’ partnership, Shein will design, manufacture and distribute a line of co-branded Forever 21 apparel and accessories that will be sold primarily on Shein’s website. Forever 21 has also hosted Shein pop-up stores and begun accepting Shein returns, both of which have driven positive foot traffic to Forever 21′s shops, one of the people said. 

The two originally linked up last August and under the terms of the agreement, Shein acquired about one-third of Sparc while Sparc took a minority stake in Shein. 

Given the concerns that Forever 21 is having with its leases, and the success of Shein’s pop-up shops, some industry observers questioned whether the digital giant could soon take over Forever 21′s stores. However, one of the people said that’s unlikely because the retailer lacks experience in physical retail and its business model involves small-batch production and an inventory that constantly shifts based on trends.

Rite Aid is closing 27 more locations as it continues to work through a bankruptcy proceeding, according to a new court filing.

The store locations are in Ohio and Michigan. More than 520 have been closed since Rite Aid filed for reorganization in October — about a quarter of its footprint. The majority of closures have mostly occurred in the Pennsylvania-based drugstore’s home state and neighboring ones, with more than 100 also hitting California, Bloomberg data showed.

Rite Aid has been unable to keep up with competition from CVS, Walgreens and Target. In its initial Chapter 11 filing last fall, Rite Aid CEO Jeffrey Stein said the chain was “burdened by unprofitable stores”; bankruptcy proceedings often allow companies to exit leases cheaply.

Rite Aid has obtained more than $100 million in financing to exit the bankruptcy proceedings, but the latest closure announcements suggest it still faces hurdles in getting official approval to do so.

Elon Musk on Wednesday tried to walk back remarks lashing out at advertisers fleeing his X social media platform.

At the Cannes Lions advertising festival in Cannes, France, Musk was asked by WPP CEO Mark Read what he meant by telling advertisers threatening to pull ads from the platform late last year to “go f— yourself.”

Musk said it was meant as a general point on free speech rather than a comment to the wider advertising industry.

“It wasn’t to advertisers as a whole,” Musk said. “It was with respect to freedom of speech, I think it is important to have a global free speech platform, where people from a wider range of opinions can voice their views.”

“In some cases, there were advertisers who were insisting on censorship,” Musk said. “At the end of the day … if we have to make a choice between censorship and losing money, [or] censorship and money, or free speech and losing money, we’re going to choose the second.”

“We’re going to support free speech rather than agree to be censored for money which I think is the right moral decision,” he added.

Musk flew into Cannes earlier this week with an aim to reassure ad groups and global brands over the future of X.

He was joined by Linda Yaccarino, X’s CEO and former chairman of global advertising and partnerships for NBCUniversal. NBCUniversal is the parent company of NBC News.

Last year, some of the world’s largest advertisers including Apple, IBM, Disney, and Sony pulled their advertising on X in the wake of controversial comments made by Musk, as well as instances of their ad placements being featured alongside toxic posts.

In November, Musk travelled to Israel to meet with local officials after he was accused by civil rights groups of amplifying anti-Jewish hatred on X.

The tech billionaire, asked at the time whether this trip was an “apology tour” to advertisers, said onstage at 2023 DealBook Summit in New York that advertisers threatening to halt spending on ads on the platform should stop advertising on his platform.

“Don’t advertise,” he said in the November interview with CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin. “If somebody is going to try and blackmail me with advertising? Blackmail me with money? Go f— yourself.”

Musk on Wednesday backpedalled on his attacks against advertisers.

“Of course, advertisers have a right to appear next to content they find compatible with their brands,” he said. “What is not cool is insisting that there can be no content that they disagree with on the platforms.”

He added: “In order for X to be the public square for the world, it really better be a free speech platform — that doesn’t mean people can say illegal things; it’s free speech within the bounds of the law.”

Tesla’s hefty downsizing in 2023 has reduced its global headcount to just over 121,000 people, including temps, internal records suggest, indicating that the automaker has slashed more than 14% of its workforce so far this year.

The latest figure is not from precise payroll data, but from the number of people who are on Tesla’s “everybody” email distribution list as of June 17, a tally viewed by CNBC.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk sent an email to “everybody” that day. He told employees that, “Over the next few weeks, Tesla will be doing a comprehensive review to provide stock options grants for exceptional performance.” He added that option grants will also be awarded to “anyone who does something outstanding for the company.” Tesla’s plan to reinstitute options grants, after previously pausing performance-based equity awards, was reported first by Reuters.

Tesla’s layoffs announcement landed in April, when Musk sent out a companywide email telling employees that the automaker would be cutting more than 10% of its staff. Layoffs at the point were already underway.

Bloomberg reported that Musk was aiming for a 20% staff cut. Musk indicated that the number could be even bigger. On the company’s first-quarter earnings call later in April, he said Tesla had reached an inefficiency level of 25% to 30% after “a long period of prosperity” that began in 2019.

“We’ve made some corrections along the way,” Musk said on the call. “But it is time to reorganize the company for the next phase of growth.”

In a filing for the fourth quarter, Tesla said its employee headcount worldwide at the end of December was 140,473, a number that represents salaried and hourly staffers. The “everybody” email list includes temps. At around 121,000, that suggests Tesla has reduced overall headcount by at least 14% since the end of 2023.

Tesla didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

In at least one instance, Musk’s headcount reductions went too far. Tesla dismantled its Supercharging team, consisting of hundreds of employees, including its leader, Rebecca Tinucci. The company later hired some of those people back, according to posts on LinkedIn

The broader cuts coincide with a slippage in sales at Tesla as the company reckons with an aging lineup of electric vehicles and increased competition in China as well as brand deterioration that a recent survey attributed partly to Musk’s “antics” and “political rants.” For the first quarter, Tesla reported a 9% drop in annul revenue, the biggest decline since 2012.

Across the auto industry, EV sales growth slowed this year after two years of rapid expansion. The slide was particularly acute for Tesla, whose Model Y was the top-selling car worldwide in 2023.

A Tesla employee, who asked not to be named in order to discuss sensitive internal issues, told CNBC that some factory workers are fearful more layoffs could follow in July depending on second-quarter results.

Musk has promised investors the company will soon publish a new “Master Plan,” which would be his fourth, and that Tesla will reveal its design for a “dedicated robotaxi” on Aug. 8. A production and deliveries report for the second quarter is expected from Tesla during the first week of July.

Tesla shares were little changed on Friday at $181.71. The stock is down 27% this year, while the Nasdaq is up 18%.

Darden Restaurants on Thursday reported mixed quarterly results as Olive Garden’s same-store sales fell for the second consecutive quarter.

For fiscal 2025, Darden is forecasting that its same-store sales will grow just 1% to 2%.

Shares of the company rose more than 2% in premarket trading.

Darden reported fiscal fourth-quarter net income of $308.1 million, or $2.57 per share, down from $315.1 million, or $2.58 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding costs related to the Ruth’s Chris acquisition and other items, the company earned $2.65 per share.

Net sales rose 6.8% to $2.96 billion, fueled by its acquisition of Ruth’s Chris Steak House and 37 other net new locations.

Darden’s overall same-store sales were flat for the quarter, dragged down by weaker-than-expected sales at Olive Garden and its fine-dining restaurants.

Olive Garden’s same-store sales fell 1.5%. Analysts were expecting the Italian-inspired chain to report flat same-store sales growth, according to StreetAccount estimates. Last quarter, Olive Garden’s same-store sales fell 1.8%, driven by a pullback from low-income consumers.

Darden’s fine-dining restaurants, which include The Capital Grille and Eddie V’s, saw their same-store sales shrink 2.6% in the quarter. That division now includes Ruth’s Chris, but those same-store results won’t be included in the category total for several more quarters.

LongHorn Steakhouse, which is overtaking Olive Garden as the gem of Darden’s portfolio, was the only segment to report same-store sales growth. The chain’s same-store sales rose 4% in the quarter.

Looking to fiscal 2025, Darden is forecasting earnings per share from continuing operations of $9.40 to $9.60, in line with Wall Street’s expectations of $9.55 per share. The company is also anticipating net sales of $11.8 billion to $11.9 billion, on the low end of analysts’ expectations of $11.94 billion.

Darden is projecting total inflation of 3% and same-store sales growth of 1% to 2% in fiscal 2025. Ruth’s Chris won’t be included in Darden’s same-store sales until the second quarter of fiscal 2025. The company plans to spend $550 million to $600 million on capital expenditures.

Voters, ages 50 and up, will have a strong influence on the November election.

And politicians who want to win their vote would be wise to emphasize personal economic issues that affect them, particularly Social Security, according to a new AARP poll of likely voters from the 44 most competitive congressional districts.

When asked one question — “How worried are you about your personal financial situation?” — 63% of all voters and 62% of voters ages 50 and up said they are worried, according to the bipartisan survey conducted earlier this month by Fabrizio Ward and Impact Research.

“It’s a substantial majority of voters who are concerned about their personal financial situation, and why economic issues are going to play such a big role in in this election,” Bob Ward, partner at Fabrizio Ward, said during a Thursday presentation of the results.

Meanwhile, for older voters, ages 50 and older, Social Security is a top economic concern, the results found.

The program’s trust funds may be depleted in the 2030s, at which point there would be across-the-board benefit cuts unless Congress acts sooner.

When asked how important Social Security is in determining their vote, 80% of voters — ages 50 and up — say it is either extremely important or very important.

The issue ranks high as a priority for voters who are Democrats, Republicans or independents.

“Democrats only have a three-point advantage on Social Security right now, so the parties are basically tied,” said Jeff Liszt, partner at Impact Research.

“Social Security is really an up for grabs issue,” he added.

Many voters said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate who will protect Social Security, he noted.

Another issue — family caregiving — also ranked as a high priority with voters ages 50 and up. To that point, 80% of that group surveyed said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate who would provide support to family caregivers to help seniors live independently as they age, and 74% said they would support a candidate who would provide tax credits to help cover the costs of family caregiving.

While President Joe Biden has vowed not to cut Social Security benefits, former President Donald Trump said in a March CNBC interview that he would reevaluate spending on entitlements, which could include benefit cuts. Democrats in Congress have proposed plans to make Social Security benefits more generous, which would be paid for by taking the wealthy.

Social Security advocacy organizations including Social Security Works and the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare recently endorsed Biden.

For the National Committee, it was only the second time in the organization’s history that it endorsed a presidential candidate.

“We broke precedent in 2020 because we believed Joe Biden would fight for America’s seniors — and protect Social Security and Medicare,” Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said in a statement.

“We did not trust Donald Trump to safeguard either program or to uphold other cherished American institutions,” he said. “Four years later, those beliefs have been validated beyond dispute.”

When polling for the full ballot in the 44 competitive districts, former President Donald Trump led with 42% among voters ages 18 and up, while Biden had 37% and Robert Kennedy, Jr. came in with 11% support.

Yet older voters, ages 50 to 64, are more likely to support Trump, while voters ages 65 and up are more likely to lean toward Biden.

Congressional Democrats and Republicans are tied with 45% support in those districts. Yet voters ages 50 to 64 are the only age demographic voting Republican, with a 13-point margin. Voters ages 65 and up plan to vote for Democrats by five points, the AARP poll found.

“Everyone’s focused on the presidential race, but this is very much up in the air who will control the House of Representatives this year,” Ward said.