JC Penney 'Valentine's Day Massacre' coming?
Insiders are reportedly worried about rumors that the retailer's CEO will lay off hundreds at the corporate offices this month.
J.C. Penney (JCP) insiders are worried about upcoming layoffs this month, calling it a "Valentine's Day Massacre," The New York Post reports.There are rumors that CEO Ron Johnson may lay off at least 10% of the 3,000 employees working at the company's headquarters in Plano, Texas.
Johnson may have been itching to do this for a while but may have wanted to wait until the company's new fiscal year began, the Post reports. That's because laying people off costs money -- in severance pay, for example -- and Johnson didn't want to load up the previous fiscal year with even more expenses.
Sources tell the newspaper the company is running low on cash. And its third-quarter earnings report confirms it, showing that at the end of October J.C. Penney had $525 million in cash -- down from $1.1 billion a year earlier.
Johnson was asked about the rumors Wednesday on CNBC and didn't give a definitive answer. Here's what he said, according to The Dallas Morning News:
"No, no. There are a lot of rumors. We have a rumor a day, it seems like. Today it's about layoffs at our headquarters. I would never talk about that, but you've got to separate the facts from the rumors. Ultimately, we need to have the right cost structure for the business and we have to grow. And we're going to be sure we do those two things."
Johnson has been busy bringing in outside brands to stores, including Martha Stewart and Joe Fresh. Something has to give when you're making that kind of pricey investment, and the Post reports that the ax will likely fall on the designers and other employees who develop Penney's private-label brands.Already, the Post reports, private brands like St. John's Bay and Arizona are starting to disappear from stores.
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I used to shop (and buy) a lot at JCP. Anytime I needed something for the house - JCP had what I wanted.
The last couple times I went there, though, they DIDN'T have what I wanted and it was like a totally different store. I not only left empty-handed, but, also disgusted.
Think one person can't make a difference? Fire R.J., get not only a new manager, but, a manager/leader and see how fast things turn around.
I spent 30+ years in the apparel business and most manufacturers I represented(all were( NYC based) wanted no part of Penneys. As my business grew with their competition it did not take long before JCP begin to sniff around. I was already aquatinted with some of their newer buyers. And as my JCPcontacts begin to expand the one thing that I had never experienced jumped up an bit me on the nose.
Of all the major department stores I dealt with none had ever ask me for kick backs.
So, here came a new experience and I was not ready for that. And the buyers who for what ever
their reason would give my samples to the Local Dallas manufacturers and they would make
an inferior product. Of Course the buyers figured out I was major league pissed.
And the saddest part was that the buyers were buying inferior products and getting money under the table.
If ANY of the Board Members read this they should see that more than half of all comments blame the CEO for the downward spiral of JCP. These are YOUR shoppers talking here!
DO yourself a favor and LISTEN.
No one shops JCP for pricey designer duds. They go directly to the source. This CEO Joohnson has completely wrecked the JCP branding. The stores look like warehouses, very cold and where are the sales?
No American shopper wants to even "think" they are paying full price for anything.
That discarded coupon program was the JCP "stand apart" draw that brought tons of shoppers into the stores...not anymore!
No wonder the stock is running in the red... the shoppers have sent their message" Bring back the old JCP programs, incentives, coupons and sales.
Then and ONLY then will JCP be able to recover from the damage that Mr. Johnson and his so called "plan" has caused.
To do nothing but more of this disastrous decision making will cost JCP it's life.
At this rate after these 3-4 years...who will care?
Most people will just talk about JCP as a fading memory......
Remeber "Montgomery Wards"? they use to sell anything you want for the house, and cloth, they are long gone. Ever wonder why? Lousy customer service.
That is what JC Penny offes. Lousy customer service. 30 years ago, they had lousy customer service, and till now they still have lousy customer service. Soon they will be gone, just like Montgomery Wards is long gone. They might as well turn their stores into indoor swapmeets, and have some Korean vendors run it, I bet you will get better customer service from them than from J.C. Penny associates.
Asta La Vista J.C. Penny!
WAke up customers JC Penney is already wel and dry! Last week my friend and I went to shop there and we found a mess in the isles, the ticket prices don't make sense at all! We also try to get someone to check us out and the girl din't even speak fluently correctly when we wanted to pay out with cash, she was like there pointing! So JC on the go for harrassing all there employees and for being the most horrible place in customrer service! Did any of you hear the story of some lady who was hard of hearing and they never gave her an opportunity for training. This ****s have to go!
JCP was always a company dedicated to family values with a client base that reflected. They decided to alienate this entire client base with openly promoting homosexual lifestyles, including adds on mothers day featuring a lesbian couple with their little girl and on father's day 2 homosexual men with thier little boy.
Now putting that aside...they have also adopted a policy what allows a biological man to, if he wears female clothing to enter wemon's dressing rooms and the wemon's restroom. There is no way I would let my wife or children shop there for fear that they will be object of some pervets jollys with the blessing of the store. My family has been a customer of JCP for 4 generations but will no longer even enter the store.
This is not about hating on homosexuals but it is about protecting my family from perverts.
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