AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTYou have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.Michael Preysman, who ran the brand for a decade, can’t believe what happened to the company he built. Can he start over?Listen · 6:29 min Michael Preysman, a co-founder of Everlane, is among a cohort of founders who have bemoaned the fate of their brands after giving up control.Credit...Christopher Polk/Getty Images EuropeMay 28, 2026, 12:56 p.m. ETWhen Michael Preysman, a co-founder of the sustainable clothing retailer Everlane, heard that the brand would be acquired by the fast fashion giant Shein, he was stunned. An early investor called to ask if he had heard the rumor, so he texted the company’s chief executive to confirm.Yes, a brand built on a commitment to “radical transparency” that offered shoppers a look into the opaque world of garment manufacturing was being bought by one of the key players in fast fashion. Everlane’s majority owner, L Catterton, a private equity firm backed by the luxury conglomerate LVMH, was getting rid of its stake.“You’re selling to the complete antithesis of what we stand for,” Mr. Preysman said in an interview. “Quite shocking, to be honest, and not a decision that I would ever make.”Mr. Preysman stepped down as Everlane’s chief executive in 2021 and later left its board because of disagreements. He is among a cohort of founders who have bemoaned the fate of their brands after giving up control, such as Anita Roddick when she took her cosmetics company, the Body Shop, public, and Kevin Plank, who returned as C.E.O. of his sportswear company, Under Armour, after taking a back seat for several years.A sale to a private equity firm, going public or stepping away from day-to-day operations are some of the many ways management tries to grow a business. But those decisions do not always align with the company’s original mission.About 70 percent of business owners regret selling their companies, according to a report from the Exit Planning Institute, an education and accreditation firm for business executives.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe.AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENT