Posted on 06/20/2012 7:44:30 AM PDT by scottjewell
J. C. Penney Company, Inc. today ousted its JCPenney brand president, Michael Francis, who oversaw the retailer's merchandising and marketing operations, with a terse statement that "We thank Michael for his hard work at jcpenney and wish him the best in his future endeavors." Francis, who was hired last October "at great expense" (as the New York Times retail reporter tweeted, in light of his whopping $12 million signing bonus) from Target is seen as taking the fall for his boss, company CEO Ron Johnson, the former Apple top retailer who oversaw JCP's new brand strategy in January. Now, of course, the heat is on Johnson to clean up a mess that was arguably of his own making. For an executive whose goal is to "simplify" matters internally and externally, it was Johnson who championed the idea of killing coupons and sales in favor of "fair and square pricing" (a reference to its logo), so-called "monthlong value" and "everyday low" pricing and twice-monthly clearance events on every first and third Friday (aka "payday" in America). The brand recently scrapped that strategy and is re-embracing the dreaded s-word — "sale." The mid-price retailer also angered conservatives by showing real-life gay dads and lesbian moms in its Father's Day and Mother's Day catalogs. Now that Francis is out, his former boss — whose hiring was announced a year ago although he didn't assume the top job (and his multi-million dollar signing bonus) until Nov. 1st — "will assume direct responsibility and oversight of the company's marketing and merchandising functions." More about: JCPenney, Retail, Advertising, Pricing, Discounts, Sales, Strategy, Leadership, Michael Francis, Ron Johnson, Target, Politics, LGBT, JCP
The CEO and Board need to be answerable, as well.
The recently-sacked President wasn’t hired in a vacuum.
Wow, thanks for that one! :)
We used to buy household furnishings from jcp. Then they came out with their anti-family support for homosexual marriage. We have not spent a dime there since. They join Homo Depot, Target, Sears, etc. on our boycott list. It is not difficult to replace them in order to run our home according to our principles.
JC Penney sales for the quarter off 55% - changing gears won’t fix it now. Those pissed off social conservatives will NEVER shop at JCP again.
Especially since the guy responsible for gay catalogues on Mothers Day and Fathers Day is still running the company, and he fired a scapegoat instead.
Sales were down already because of the earlier policy change on coupons and discounts, but it looks as if it was the gay activist nonsense that really killed them.
Business is down for a number of retailers, but a 55% drop is hard to explain otherwise.
Well, this is cause for hope, then. I was getting the feeling that the gay agenda had totally won over the retail sector. Maybe not. And maybe social conservatives can push back in other areas as well.
Have you looked at the quality of their clothing lately? I ran in a few months ago to pick a last minute wedding gift. They're always good for a nice quilt or kitchen item. While I was there, I looked at a few items for my grand daughter whose birthday was nearing. I used to like a lot of their clothes, but the stuff I was seeing was just cheap garbage that I could have gotten at a local Dollar General.
Why do corporations sometimes go out of their way to take sides in these culture war issues?
Why, if they do take sides, why do they tend to support the liberal side?
How many J.C. Penney stores are there in “gay” areas such as The Castro, P. Town, etc.???
I guess it seems to me, that if you are in business, you want to welcome everyone. You would keep in mind that there are divisive social and political issues out there, which have nothing to do with your business.
In other words, you **ss off half or more of people when you take the liberal side of an issue. What the heck is the point of doing that?
Why do corporations sometimes go out of their way to take sides in these culture war issues?
Why, if they do take sides, why do they tend to support the liberal side?
How many J.C. Penney stores are there in “gay” areas such as The Castro, P. Town, etc.???
I guess it seems to me, that if you are in business, you want to welcome everyone. You would keep in mind that there are divisive social and political issues out there, which have nothing to do with your business.
In other words, you **ss off half or more of people when you take the liberal side of an issue. What the heck is the point of doing that?
“hired last October “at great expense”. . .from Target”
I watched those odd Target ads for a year before I realized the company was Target. They would just should the logo - as if we all were supposed to know what that meant.
I’ve notice they are now doing a similar thing with jcpennys. I turn the channel when Ellen appears.
To the J. C. Penney Company:
I was a J.C. Penney associate from 1979 through 1986 (Granada Hills, Canoga Park, and Northridge, CA.) In the 25+ years since then I have remained a loyal customer frequently shopping in J.C. Penney retail stores and online. I would speculate that nearly 2/3 of my casual and business apparel has been purchased through the J. C. Penney Company. While traveling on vacation once I even made a detour to visit Kemmerer, Wyoming just to see where the company that had been such a large part of my life began.
Sadly it would appear that my decades long relationship with J.C.Penney is about to end. I am greatly troubled by the recent departure from the J.C. Penney Company's traditional American roots and the Christian values of founder James Cash Penney.
Suffice it to say there is presently a culture war in this country over traditional families and the very nature of the definition of marriage. For a retail company to choose sides on this ongoing controversy is foolhardy and flies in the face of the moral values that its founder held dear. Indeed, even if the company had been founded by a secular entrepreneur, embracing one side of this debate is an insult to the great majority of the American public and simply a bad business decision.
Regardless of the intent or reasoning of the company's decision to embrace same-sex marriage in its catalogs and advertising, until I am informed or learn otherwise of J.C. Penney returning to the American traditions and respect for its Christian roots, I will no longer be a customer neither through retail stores or purchases online.
Sincerely
That's sort of what I asserted when they made the switch. Their niche is above Kohls/Target and below Macys/Neiman Marcus. They were targeting the wrong demographic.
That's too bad. I used to shop for clothes there. Their suits were superior to Kohls and when they had their half off sales they were competitively priced.
The gay agenda was a huge part of their decline here in central Indiana. I no longer visit JCP, and neither do many people I know, all because of Ellen.
When you can watch an advertisement, especially a clever and amusing advertisement and not know what the product or service is, that means the ad agency is targeting the client, not the client's customers.
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