JCPenney Default Risk Hits All-Time High

Zero hedge ^

[CatherineofAragon]

Thanks; I’m bookmarking this to read later.

Either way, their sale prices are dirt cheap, though.

[Donnafrflorida]

yep me too. paid off that 29% cr card and never used them again.

[moovova]

Thanks for the warning.

[Sans-Culotte]

I was once a loyal JCPshopper. I am over 6'5" tall, and started ordering from JCP after I received a Big/Tall catalog in the mail one day. It is difficult to find clothes that fit my frame (most big/tall stores are really big/fat stores). The JCP catalog had a good selection with decent prices (tall clothing costs more than regular-sized clothing).

However, right around the time the idiot CEO took over, they stopped sending the big/tall catalogs. Instead, they sent a catalog with only a few products on a page. No more tall clothing advertised; just a few unshaven metrosexuals in rumpled clothes. They stopped sending coupons in the mail and email. When I would go into a store, the product offering was much reduced.

So, we cannot really blame the slide solely on the fact that JCP pandered to queers. That CEO effed up everything he could during his time there. His tenure was a disaster in every way possible. The queer stuff was just the last straw.

Kind of like the company where I work, in which the owner is turning the company over to his son, who is "succeeding" the way JCP "succeeds".

[Buckeye McFrog]

That means one thing for certain - wages in the retail industry must completely suck!

Trust me, they do.

Had a job like this once. Busted my hump 60+ hrs. per week. Someone from the Food Stamp program came by and put up a recruiting poster. If I had one more member in my family I would have qualified. My wife was pregnant at the time. Just the kick in the tail I needed to go and find a better paying gig.

[IronJack]

Oh, I know there’s no chance anyone in the moral vacuum of Corporate America is going to defy the conventional tide and oppose homosexuality. The cowards at the helm are more terrified of the “adverse publicity” they’d get from rejecting queers than they are with the increased sales they’d see. It’s more important for them to get invited to the right chablis-and-brie parties than to keep the company solvent.

And the stockholders bleat along like sheep going to slaughter.

But it might make for an interesting floor fight at the next annual meeting ...

[lu shissler]

Haven’t shopped there for five years.

[catnipman]

“If I ever join the Screen Actors Guild and need a screen name, I think I’ll give “Sears Poncho” some serious consideration.”

I personally think “Poncho Sears” rolls of the tongue much easier. Maybe even better than Carlos Danger.

[wbill]

oppose homosexuality

At this point, I'd be satisfied with "Don't promote it." Or, "Give it the same attention as you would give any other specialty segment which comprises 1 to 3 percent of the population".

[wbill]

It does not fit. It’s going back

I too, quit going to JCP. Mostly, my decision was cost-based, though their pro-gay stance didn't help them any.

Then recently, I got lured in a couple of times by their coupons.

Both times, I looked at their merch, said "Meh", and walked out. They've completely changed what they carry from a couple of years ago. I thought that the higher end stuff was priced out of my market, and the low-to-mid range stuff looked cheaply made out of lower quality materials.

Figure that if I want cheap quality garments, I'll just go shop at WalMart. Kohl's (and Macy's, surprisingly) has taken my business from JCP.

And, FWIW, both times I went back to JCP, the store was empty. Not 'just a little slow'. Empty. 3-4 clerks standing around a checkout talking. That's it. One of the times was on a Saturday, so the place should have been hopping.

I've made sure that JCP isn't in my stock portfolio. ;-)

[Veto!]

And, FWIW, both times I went back to JCP, the store was empty. Not 'just a little slow'. Empty. 3-4 clerks standing around a checkout talking. That's it. One of the times was on a Saturday, so the place should have been hopping.

Well, it was really busy last Saturday, lines at cash registers. Heavy "sale" advertising. Agree, you have to watch those fabrics. I like Macys better, but their petites don't fit me correctly. Now JCP's don't either. And there are so few stores carrying petites anymore as floor space is filled with plus sizes. Sign of the times, I guess.

[wbill]

Mrs WBill is a 'petite'. She shops at Kohl's mostly, I think, when she's not hitting the outlets. :-)

However, she's been on a self-imposed tight clothing budget for the past year or two. She said, and I quote, "I've already got too much in my closet that I never wear." (I love my wife....)

Sooo....she's just been getting the basics and necessities. Which I understand little about, and never argue with. :-)

[Veto!]

Thanks for the tip, wbill. I’ll check out Kohl’s.

I have too much in my closets too, and will have the semi-annual tossout day when I drag out the winter duds.

Which leaves room for more “basics and necessities.” :)

Fashion slave?

[zeestephen]

Thanks, Eepsy.

Yes, Gold Toe’s are almost indestructible.

The problem I have finding Gold Toe white socks is that only a few places sell the shoe size 12-15 socks.

I’ve got size 13 feet, and the one-size-fits-all Gold Toe just won’t work for me.

[Rodamala]

I used to get black Wigwam work socks at Walmart... because they wer actually American made.... they then took inventory of ding dong (Chinese made) ones and that ended that. I found New Balance socks at Sears the ONLY American-made sock... well sure as shit, next think I know, they are being “Hechoed en Mexico”... It’s infuriating that this nation no longer has a producer economy... it’s just a culture of entitled consumers.

[Rodamala]

Same sorta story here... I would get the long sleeve Big Mac Chambray button down workshirts... and Big Mac Hickory Striped heavier long sleeve button down workshirts. Mom would always ask if I needed shirts and would put the sale catalog on the kitchen table for me... Mom pitched a shitfit when they stopped sending sales circulars... she was slow on the uptake with anything involving the internets.

[wbill]

Which leaves room for more “basics and necessities.” :) Fashion slave?

I never claim or pretend to understand women's fashion. I just know what I like to look at. :-)

I think that my wife's definition of "basics and necessities" is a little different. For instance, she was agonizing recently over picking up a pair of everyday shoes (New Balance? I dunno, but they look really comfortable. Wish they made them for men...). The ones she usually wears were flat worn out.

I said, "Buy the @#$#@$@ shoes, you wear these all of the time, and while money is tight, we're not that destitute." It wasn't like this was her 6th pair of 'really cute' black pumps, or something. She bought 'em, and I'm glad.

[wbill]

New Balance socks

I just read an article on "New Balance". 25% of their production is still in Maine - they're one of the state's biggest employers. Dunno which 25%, though.

Gold Toe socks are still made in the USA. Mostly in NC, I think. I wish that they fit me well.

[Veto!]

New Balance shoes are terrific—if they fit correctly, which is a challenge for me. I have some that are ten years old. Not looking new by any means, but serviceable for chores.

New Balance makes men’s shoes too. http://www.newbalance.com/men/shoes/10000,default,sc.html

[wbill]

Welll... Sizing aside, Mrs WBill's are a beige and pink pair. I don't have a Thing that will go with them. ;-)

I've got a pair of NB sneakers. Love them.