Do Won Chang (

Hangul The Korean alphabet is the modern writing system for the Korean language. In North Korea, the alphabet is known as (), and in South Korea, it is known as (). The letters for the five basic consonants reflect the shape of the speech organs ...

: 장도원; born March 20, 1954) is a Korean-born American businessman. He founded the clothing store chain

Forever 21 F21 OpCo LLC, trade name, doing business as Forever 21, was a multinational fast-fashion retailer. It was originally founded as Fashion 21 in Highland Park, Los Angeles, Highland Park, Los Angeles in 1984.Forever 21History & Facts, n.d. Retrieved ...

with his wife Jin Sook Chang.

Early life

Chang grew up in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and moved to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

in 1981 with his wife, Jin Sook Chang. He never attended university and worked in coffee shops growing up.

Career

He and his wife, Jin Sook (Hangul: 진숙), opened a 900-square foot clothing store then named Fashion 21 in 1984 in Highland Park,

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

with only $11,000 in savings. The store took off, and as they expanded to other locations, the store's name was changed to

otherwise known as XXI. The number of stores grew to 600, with 30,000 employees by 2015. The company has remained a family-owned operation. It has filed for bankruptcy protection as of 2019.

Personal life

Do Won Chang and Jin Sook Chang have two children, and live in

Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hills ...

. They are Christians, which is why John 3:16 is on the bottom of every bag. Their two daughters, Esther and Linda Chang co-founded the company Riley Rose, a make-up and accessory company that Forever 21 carries in its stores. Linda was also in charge of marketing at Forever 21, while Esther was in charge of visual design.

Philanthropy

The Changs have donated money to churches and faith groups, and Do Won travels to perform missionary work.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chang, Do Won 1954 births American billionaires American retail chief executives American businesspeople in fashion Businesspeople from California South Korean emigrants to the United States Living people