A Penney Days promo will be inaugurated by J.C. Penney on Sunday, February 28, giving customers the chance to purchase products costing just 1 penny.
The initiative, launched under the motto “Get Your Penney’s Worth” and presented on Thursday, February 25, will unfold online (at jcp.com), and also in brick-and-mortar stores, for a period of one week.
Items pertaining to various private brands such as Arizona will either be commercialized for just 1 penny each, or as part of deals requiring the client to buy a regular-priced product in order to have the opportunity to obtain another one by paying just an extra penny.
It’s unclear for now which items will be so heavily discounted as to be included in this new campaign, and company officials have said that they won’t be disclosing such lists in advance, so as to encourage clients to visit their stores on a regular basis.
However, given that the Arizona product line typically includes accessories, footwear and apparel, it’s likely that Penney Days will attract many people wishing to expand their wardrobe at virtually no cost.
While it may appear unreasonable for the department store chain headquartered in Plano, Texas to slash prices by such an enormous margin, the strategy has been deemed necessary, in order to renew interest in the company’s merchandise.
As explained by Mary Beth West, who serves as chief customer and marketing officer at J.C. Penney, the target audience for the Penney Days campaign is represented by typical American moms, who are extremely budget-conscious and pressed for time.
Such customers have to benefit from a no-frills shopping experience that will provide them with products that are good value for money, without putting unnecessary pressure on limited resources.
Thanks to this new time-limited promo, those who aren’t so familiar with J.C. Penney’s wide range of merchandise will be able to sample these high-quality products, at unbeatable prices.
Even though the current campaign will only last a week, company representatives have announced that such promotions will unfold several times per year, so that as many customers as possible can explore five-star items available in J.C. Penney’s department stores.
The retailer probably devised Penney Days in an effort to revitalize sales, even though it might operate at a loss for the duration of the campaign.
in 2017, the company has had to shut down 40 of its department stores, the equivalent of 4% of the 1,060 locations it has across the United States.
This measure, involving retail shops whose performance had been extremely disappointing in recent months, corresponded to a personnel reduction amounting to 2,250 staff members.
In Plano, Texas, efforts to revamp and reorganize business have affected approximately 300 white-collar workers, who were offered more low-paying positions within the company, or severance payments in case they chose to search for a job elsewhere.
Many of the initiatives meant to streamline operations have been devised by Marvin Ellison, who was appointed chief executive officer at J.C. Penney on August 1, 2015.
It appears that efforts have paid off, as evidenced by the fact that sales for the last quarter of 2015 have risen by around 4.1%, with annual revenues reaching $12.26 billion and therefore surpassing the ones reported in 2014 ($11.86 billion).
Image Source: Flickr