Avoid
Status: Avoid54 brands in the Ledger.
Brands actively engaged in the enshittification playbook. Licensing models, post-acquisition cost-cutting, brand equity being extracted.
54 results
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Lands' End
Status: AvoidAmerican direct-mail apparel brand founded by Gary Comer in 1963. Built its reputation on durable basics, generous returns, and customer service before passing through Sears (2002-2014) and a decade of public-market ownership.
WHP Global (controlling stake); LEWHP LLC joint venture vehicle
Footwear · Heritage Boots
Dr. Martens
Status: AvoidIconic British footwear brand. Famous for the 1460 and 1461 air-cushioned boots first produced at Cobbs Lane factory in Wollaston, Northamptonshire.
Dr. Martens plc (LSE: DOCS)
Footwear · Rubber Boots
Hunter Boot
Status: AvoidOriginally a Scottish manufacturer of rubber Wellington boots founded in Edinburgh in 1856, evolved into a heritage outdoor and lifestyle brand. Best known for the Original Tall Wellington.
Authentic Brands Group
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Express
Status: AvoidMall-based business casual apparel retailer for men and women. Was a fixture of American mall culture for four decades before its 2024 bankruptcy.
Phoenix Retail LLC (WHP Global + Simon Property Group + Brookfield Properties + Centennial)
Apparel · Pants & Bottoms
G-Star RAW
Status: AvoidDutch designer denim brand specializing in raw (unwashed, untreated) denim. Known for anatomically engineered jean construction and military-influenced design.
WHP Global (majority); Jos van Tilburg and existing shareholders retain minority stake
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Joseph Abboud
Status: AvoidAmerican menswear designer brand known for tailored suiting and modern classic aesthetic. Joseph Abboud was the only designer to win the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year award in two consecutive years (1989 and 1990).
WHP Global (trademark); Tailored Brands operates US/Canada under exclusive license
Apparel · Pants & Bottoms
William Rast
Status: AvoidCelebrity-founded American denim and lifestyle label. Distributed via Macy's, Target, JCPenney, and similar mid-tier department stores.
WHP Global
Apparel · Pants & Bottoms
rag & bone
Status: AvoidNew York-based premium fashion brand fusing British tailoring, American workwear, and New York street style. Known for premium denim and casual essentials.
Guess?, Inc. (operating assets); 50/50 JV between Guess and WHP Global owns IP
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Anne Klein
Status: AvoidAmerican women's fashion brand founded in 1968. Known historically for popularizing mix-and-match casual workwear separates for professional women.
WHP Global
Footwear · Sneakers
Lotto
Status: AvoidItalian performance sportswear and footwear brand known historically for tennis (Navratilova, Becker), soccer (the Stadio boot debuted at the 1990 World Cup), volleyball, and basketball.
WHP Global (global trademarks); Lotto Sport Italia S.p.A. operates Italy/Europe/MEA
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Vera Wang
Status: AvoidAmerican luxury fashion brand and defining authority in bridal. Vera Wang opened her flagship salon at the Carlyle Hotel in 1990 and ran the brand self-financed for 35 years before the WHP sale.
WHP Global
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Isaac Mizrahi
Status: AvoidAmerican fashion designer brand. Most retail volume runs through QVC interactive shopping; the brand has generated $1 billion-plus in cumulative retail sales since founding.
WHP Global (70% controlling stake); Xcel Brands retains 30%
Apparel · Underwear
Warners
Status: AvoidAmerican intimate apparel brand with over a century of heritage. Bras, underwear, and intimate apparel for the mass market.
WHP Global
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Ben Sherman
Status: AvoidBritish heritage menswear brand founded in Brighton in 1963. Defined the mod movement of the 1960s with Oxford button-down shirts; later adopted by skinhead, ska, mod-revival, Britpop, and grime subcultures across six decades.
Marquee Brands (Neuberger Berman Private Equity)
Footwear · Dress Shoes
Bruno Magli
Status: AvoidItalian luxury footwear brand. Founded in Bologna by siblings Marino, Mario, and Bruno Magli, the brand became synonymous with Italian dress shoe craftsmanship in the mid-20th century and was a celebrity favorite from Sophia Loren and Marilyn Monroe through later decades.
Marquee Brands (Neuberger Berman Private Equity)
Apparel · Outerwear-Technical
Body Glove
Status: AvoidAmerican watersports apparel and accessories brand. Twin brothers Bill and Bob Meistrell are widely credited with inventing the first practical wetsuit out of the back of their Redondo Beach surf shop, Dive N' Surf, in 1953. Product range now includes wetsuits, swimsuits, footwear, life vests, sunglasses, paddle boards, phone cases, and snorkeling equipment.
Marquee Brands (75%); Meistrell family retains 25%
Apparel · Socks
Stance
Status: AvoidSan Clemente-based lifestyle and performance sock brand. Co-founders pioneered the idea of socks as a self-expression and lifestyle category, partnering with the NBA, MLB, Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Warner Bros. Discovery, Billie Eilish, Dwyane Wade, and the Estate of Basquiat.
Marquee Brands (Neuberger Berman Private Equity)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
BCBGMAXAZRIA
Status: AvoidAmerican women's contemporary fashion brand founded by Tunisian-born designer Max Azria in 1989. Portfolio also includes BCBGeneration and (via Marquee's 2017 deal) Hervé Léger.
Marquee Brands (Neuberger Berman Private Equity)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Laura Ashley
Status: AvoidBritish heritage fashion and home brand founded by Welsh secretary Laura Mountney and her husband Bernard Ashley in a Pimlico, London flat in 1953. The first product was Victorian-style headscarves; one was worn by Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. Now a fully licensed lifestyle brand spanning fashion, home, and 200+ lifestyle categories.
Marquee Brands (Neuberger Berman Private Equity)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Anti Social Social Club
Status: AvoidLos Angeles-based streetwear brand founded by Neek Lurk (born Andrew Buenaflor), formerly social media manager at Stussy. Brand built reputation on logo-adorned hoodies and tees, prolific collaborations (BAPE, Cactus Plant Flea Market, Hello Kitty, Hot Wheels, DHL, Playboy, Formula 1, FaZe Clan), and culturally infamous shipping delays.
Marquee Brands (Neuberger Berman Private Equity)
Apparel · Hats & Accessories
Totes
Status: AvoidAmerican weather-related accessories brand. Best known for the foldable, collapsible umbrella (introduced 1970), rubber rain boots, rain hats, and slipper socks. Once the largest umbrella seller in the United States.
Marquee Brands (IP); Randa Apparel & Accessories (operating partner)
Apparel · Hats & Accessories
Isotoner
Status: AvoidAmerican gloves and slippers brand. Inventor of the first stretchable nylon/elastane glove with leather coverings. Now spans gloves, slippers, and seasonal footwear.
Marquee Brands (IP); Randa Apparel & Accessories (operating partner)
Tools · Pneumatic Tools / Fasteners
Bostitch
Status: AvoidPneumatic fasteners, staplers, nailers, glue guns, and adjacent hand tools at home-center and Walmart price points.
Stanley Black & Decker
Tools · Hand Tools
Irwin
Status: AvoidHand tools, locking pliers (Vise-Grip), drill bits, woodworking and quick-release clamps (Quick-Grip), tin snips; home-center and big-box retail tier with mass-market sub-tier (Walmart).
Stanley Black & Decker
Tools · Hand Tools
Craftsman
Status: AvoidAmerican hand tool brand, originally a Sears house brand.
Stanley Black & Decker
Eyewear · Sunglasses
Ray-Ban
Status: AvoidHistoric American sunglass brand, now an EssilorLuxottica property.
EssilorLuxottica
Tools · Power Tools
Black+Decker
Status: AvoidConsumer power tools. Big-box retailer staple.
Stanley Black & Decker
Eyewear · Sunglasses
Oakley
Status: AvoidAmerican performance sunglasses.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Sunglasses
Persol
Status: AvoidItalian heritage sunglasses.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Prescription Frames
Oliver Peoples
Status: AvoidPremium Los Angeles-branded frames.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Sunglasses
Costa Del Mar
Status: AvoidPerformance fishing sunglasses.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Brick & Mortar
Sunglass Hut
Status: AvoidSunglass retail chain.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Brick & Mortar
LensCrafters
Status: AvoidPrescription eyewear retail chain.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Brick & Mortar
Target Optical
Status: AvoidIn-Target optical retail.
EssilorLuxottica (retail partnership)
Eyewear · Brick & Mortar
Pearle Vision
Status: AvoidOptical retail franchise.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Online Retailer
EyeBuyDirect
Status: AvoidLow-cost direct-to-consumer prescription eyewear.
EssilorLuxottica
Tools · Power Tools
Metabo HPT
Status: AvoidUS-market brand for KKR's ex-Hitachi Koki power tools. Originally Hitachi in the US (known for nail guns), rebranded Metabo HPT.
KKR (via Hitachi Koki)
Tools · Power Tools
Ridgid (power tools)
Status: AvoidOrange-branded power tools sold almost exclusively through Home Depot.
Emerson Electric (trademark) / Techtronic Industries (TTI, manufacturing)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Brooks Brothers
Status: AvoidHistoric American tailor. Dressed 40 US presidents including Lincoln.
Authentic Brands Group / SPARC Group (Catalyst Brands operator)
Apparel · Outerwear - Technical
Eddie Bauer
Status: AvoidHistoric American outdoor apparel brand. First Ascent technical line, Guide Pro pants, legendary down jackets.
Authentic Brands Group
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Champion
Status: AvoidAmerican athletic apparel. Reverse Weave hoodies, collegiate athletic wear.
Authentic Brands Group
Apparel · Pants & Bottoms
Dockers
Status: AvoidAmerican khaki and casual pants brand, originally a Levi Strauss sub-brand.
Authentic Brands Group
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Volcom
Status: AvoidSurf and skate apparel brand. Originally a Costa Mesa, California boardsports label.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders acquisition)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Quiksilver
Status: AvoidAustralian-origin surf apparel brand.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Billabong
Status: AvoidAustralian surf and boardshort brand.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
RVCA
Status: AvoidSurf and skate lifestyle apparel.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Roxy
Status: AvoidWomen's surf and lifestyle apparel, originally a Quiksilver sub-brand.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders)
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Element
Status: AvoidSkateboard apparel and hardgoods.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders)
Apparel · Pants & Bottoms
Bonobos
Status: AvoidDirect-to-consumer menswear, originally known for fit-focused pants.
WHP Global
Apparel · Pants & Bottoms
Joe's Jeans
Status: AvoidPremium denim brand, once known as one of the best men's jeans on the market.
WHP Global
Apparel · Shirts & Tops
Forever 21
Status: AvoidFast fashion retailer.
Authentic Brands Group
Eyewear · Sunglasses
Vogue Eyewear
Status: AvoidItalian-branded sunglasses and frames.
EssilorLuxottica
Eyewear · Online Retailer
Glasses.com
Status: AvoidOnline prescription eyewear retailer.
EssilorLuxottica
Footwear · Sneakers
DC Shoes
Status: AvoidSkate footwear and apparel.
Authentic Brands Group (via Boardriders)
Avoid
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