JCPenney

I’ve «cut through» Jacques Penné twice in the past week getting into the main part of Valley Hills Mall. I am amazed at the changes that are in progress. I found out yesterday that their latest CEO was fired, and the previous CEO is coming back. Their stock price is in free fall, as analysts are predicting their eminent doom.
Back to the Hickory store… they are in the middle of a tremendous renovation. Brand new taupe colored tiles are being installed all throughout the store. Plastic curtains are up everywhere. The store has a new, fancy look. There are employees everywhere, but I have also noticed a dramatic increase in the number of customers in the store.
The bathrooms have been completely remodeled. The gent’s bathroom that I visited this afternoon, was just amazingly clean and new — and NICE. I mean we’re talking more upscale than the bathrooms at Nordstrom’s Southpark, Charlotte.
The «new» store reminds me of a Belk’s. I think that JCP is trying to move upscale, but in doing so they have darn near lost their entire loyal customer base — therein lies the perceived problem with the company as a whole. See Sonja B.‘s review which perfectly reflects longtime customers’ attitudes.
Personally, I like the change, and I think that it would probably have paid off in the long run with better profit margins and a new, younger clientele. I was raised, back in the Stone age, and my mother frequently shopped and clothed us at JCP. It’s called value for the money. This WAS JCP’S bread and butter — no longer. Slipping profit margins have forced them to retreat from this long tenured store philosophy. Will the change work? Time will tell. Hopefully they will be around for a long time to come, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Until they can establish a brand «identity,» they are going to flounder. For now, they are kind of like the Hardee’s of department stores — a different identity every week.

I’ve shopped at this store off and on for over 10 years when I visit local family. They have recently «updated» and reorganized this store. What a MAJOR disappointment. They’ve taken a very nice store and made it unfunctional and unrealistic for the majority of the local community. I know a lot of people that used to go every week and no longer do so…