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Sycamore Partners
“Staples, Walgreens, Hot Topic — collecting struggling retailers like they're going out of style. Because they are.”
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The youngest major firm on this list, Sycamore Partners has specialized in consumer and retail “investments” since 2011 — which usually means buying struggling brands and trying to squeeze out whatever money they can before the music stops. Their portfolio reads like a suburban strip mall from 2005. Their blockbuster move: acquiring Walgreens in 2025 and promptly splitting it into five separate companies, selling off the profitable pieces and leaving the rest to fend for itself.
Founded 2011 · New York, NY