Posted on 01/29/2013 1:05:40 AM PST by rawhide
J.C. Penney is bringing back sales.
The struggling department store chain this week will begin adding back some of the hundreds of sales it ditched last year in hopes of luring shoppers who were turned off when the discounts disappeared, CEO Ron Johnson told The Associated Press.
Penney also plans to add price tags or signs for more than half of its merchandise to show customers how much they're saving by shopping at the chain a strategy used by a few other retailers. For store-branded items such as Arizona, Penney will show comparison prices from competitors.
The reversal comes on the eve of the one-year anniversary of its original vow to almost completely get rid of the sales that Americans covet but that cut into a store's profits. The idea was to offer everyday low prices that customers could count on rather than the nearly 600 fleeting discounts, coupons and sales it once offered.
The bold plan has been closely watched by others in the retail industry, which commonly offers deep discounts to draw shoppers. But so far the experiment has served as a cautionary tale of how difficult it is to change shoppers' habits: Penney next month is expected to report its fourth consecutive quarter of big sales drops and net losses. After losing more than half of its value, Penney's stock is trading at about $19. And the company's credit ratings are in junk status.
Johnson, who rolled out the pricing plan shortly after taking the top job in November 2011, told The Associated Press the latest moves are not a "deviation" from his strategy but rather an "evolution."
*snip*
(Excerpt) Read more at ajc.com ...
No, that is sort of a Free Republic myth. Although he did hire Ellen, attempting to dump the rules of retailing did him in.
Per this article, the policy now is to return to the tried and true policies. That has actually been underway for several months.
Penney’s needs to start coming out with coupons again. BTW, it was at Penney’s a couple of years ago that I discovered my favorite shoes of all time...Avia. They normally sell for over $50 per pair but with the sale plus coupon, they were under $20. I’ve been getting only Avia ever since. Incredibly comfortable but very durable.
Kohl's once had coupons for $10 off any purchase, no minimum. Sooooo... When they had a sale on T-Shirts for $10 I filled my closets with $10 T-shirts which were actually FREE after coupon.
“No, that is sort of a Free Republic myth. Although he did hire Ellen, attempting to dump the rules of retailing did him in.”
You’re probably right overall, but JCP’s foray into the “two dad” world permanently turned me off.
Kohl’s for me as well. They just had shirt’s online with the 38” sleeve my husband needs.
Is the Taco eater still their spokesperson?
If so count me out. It does make a difference to me.
I like Kohl’s. Also, if you live in the eastern Pennsylvania - New Jersey region, Boscov’s is very good. They have quality merchandise, and always have good sales. Boscov’s is one of the last of the family owned traditional department store chains in this country.
Ron Johnson is just another arrogant, egotistical a$$ clown convinced of his own brilliance. Like the jug-eared moron that infests the White House, his goal from the beginning was to “transform” JCP to a place everyone in America would want to shop. Problem is, not everyone wants to head down to the mall and deal with all the hassles and the crowds; more importantly, he gave the “one finger salute” to millions of existing JCP customers, by removing the one driver that brought them to the stores - the coupons.
The complaints regarding the change were immediate and numerous, but the “genius” pressed on with the ill-concieved plan and even went as far as to suggest the customers were too stupid to understand his brilliant marketing. Pandering to 1-2% gay population that wouldn’t be caught dead in their stores is another example of the “in your face” transformation that failed miserably, but instead of admitting his numerous mistakes, Johnson simply states that he is “evolving”.
Next month look for the emergence of JCPenney “genius bars”...
I think the present CEO, Ron Johnson, who was hired from Apple, is the instigator of: no sales, lousy, expensive advertising campaign and big gay push starting with Degenerate’s hire.
He’s still there and still doesn’t get it...JCP will soon be histoire.
I used to always find clothing at Kohl’s that was a bit different, a bit unique...not like other clothing stores in my area. But these past couple of years, Kohl’s has been filled with those horrible, screamingly-loud and ugly graphic prints, like something left over from a 1970’s nightmare. Not their fault, I guess....but I sure wish this particular trend would die.
Everything I need is at Wal-Mart or Bass Pro.
They can thank Ellen Degenerate for their downward spiral.
I'm glad I'm not on your gift list.
Apparently RJ has been slow to realize that selling unique Apple products to hip young folks is a bit different than selling commodity type products to middle aged folks.
Executive hubris fail.....
I shop Boscov’s online. You can get terrific deals. Love it.
Epic hubris fail along with deserting the “boring, conventional” middle class who frequented JCP...
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