ASNA

Ascena Retail Group Inc

A major American specialty retailer of women's and girls' clothing, Ascena once steered a stable of familiar brands — Ann Taylor, LOFT, Lane Bryant, Maurices, Dressbarn, and the tween store Justice. It began in 1962 as a single Connecticut shop called Dressbarn, founded by Elliot and Roslyn Jaffe, and grew through acquisitions before renaming itself Ascena in 2011. A playful quirk: Lane Bryant's name came from a bank clerk who misheard founder Lena Himmelstein's first name as "Lane."