If you’ve watched primetime television lately, you may have seen the new JCPenney ads. No, they don’t feature any clothes, or accessories or sales promotions. In fact, you don’t even know the ad is for JCPenney until the logo flashes on the screen at the end. What you do see is men and women desperately cutting coupons, screaming over missed sales, and generally making fun of the mayhem that comes with holding a bazillion sales promotions on different items at one time, which JCPenney is known to do.
All this, along with a logo revamp, is the store’s latest rebranding effort brought by former Apple exec Ron Johnston who took over as the company’s CEO in November. It appears that constantly printing coupons and holding sales could actually diminish your brand. Who knew? Now the company is taking an “anti sales” approach, or what they’re calling “Fair and Square Pricing.” This new initiative will also include “Monthly Value” discounts on select items and “Best Price,” which are items marked for clearance on the first and third Fridays of the month (hello payday). All changes will be revealed on February 1 (if you go to the JCPenney Facebook page, there’s a big countdown to that day).
In addition to the new logo, commercials and business philosophy, JCPenney has tapped Ellen DeGeneres to be the new brand ambassador and has welcomed fashion designer Nanette Lepore who will create an exclusive line for the department store. As we mentioned, all will be revealed on February 1, and the transformation is expected to take four years to complete. The question is, will anyone care? Are you excited about the new changes at JCPenney? Why or why not?