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EPIC REBRANDING FAIL
(as Forbes.com called it)
About the J. C. Penney Company, Inc
Generates annual revenues of nearly $13 billion from its 1,100 stores American retailer, founded in 1902, based in Plano, Texas Claims to have broad assortment of national, private and exclusive brands to fit all shapes, sizes, colors and wallets Products: clothing, cosmetics, electronics, footwear, furniture, housewares, jewelry
Retail market in the USA
Retailing is struggling due to the housing market crash, the financial meltdown, high gas prices, and chronic unemployment Online retailing takes over, with significant growth rates
Top players on the market
Consumer survey in 2013 - Market Force Information study
J.C. Penny history ups and downs
Early history and incorporation - 1902 - 1959 Smooth start gradual growth Fun fact Sam Walton, who later founded Walmart, started work here in 1940 opened the 1,000th store in 1928 (gross business had reached $190,000,000 (equivalent to $2.61 billion in 2014)
J.C. Penny history ups and downs
Growth and success - 1960 - 1979 1962 entered discount merchandising (until 1981) 1963 first catalogue issued
Began to expand categories of products sold
1973 peak number of stores 2053 1974 recession hit hard Decision to focus on core retail stores 1979 began to accept Visa cards
J.C. Penny history ups and downs
Acquisitions and internet store 1980 1999 1984 - acquired the First National Bank of Harrington, Delaware and renamed it JCPenney National Bank issued its own credit cards 1993 - the largest catalog retailer in the US Numerous aqcuisitions from drug stores to firearms stores 1997 Internet store
J.C. Penny history ups and downs
Continuous growth 2000 - 2009 stores-within-a-store: Sephora Focus on brand image 2007 slogan changed from "It's All Inside" to "Every Day Matters" Several brands launched (in collaboration with
renowned fashion designers Ralph Lauren)
CSR, social media (2010)
2010 Present: Rebranding Chaos
A rebranding campaign every year
Confused customers, confused employees
Company proves unstable Inconsistent strategy changed every year Degrading brand image
Initial situation (2011)
Company did well in 2010 36% profit growth compared to 2009 Cotton crisis prices grew higher than ever JC Penney raised earnings expectations and shares started dropping 2011 Ron Johnson (former Senior Vice President of Retail Operations at Apple) became CEO Changes the entire market mix of JCP Main goal focus on market share
Changes brought by the new CEO
Fired Saatchi&Saatchi at the end of 2011 new brands, new pricing schemes, exclusive merchandise, new name (jcp) and a new ad campaign fair and square JC Penney ran 590 promotions in 2011, consumers ignored 99 percent of them. For 2012, Johnson only wanted 12 promotions ended up to switching to every-day low pricing This switch, although understandable if judged revenue-wise, led to a change in how consumers perceive JCP from playing in the big league with Macys and Nordstrom, JCP ended up among mass retailers like Home Depot, Target and Walmart
JC Penneys Worst Day Ever
May 16th 2012 Loss of 25 cents a share, 1.5x expectations Sales of $3.15 billion, missing expectations by $250 million Fired 10% of the employees at the HQ, hoping to save 200 million dollars Rapidly losing market share to Macys
Why didnt the plan work?
Ron Johnson remained CEO for 17 months he failed to bring good changes in JCP because he tried to apply his successful pattern from Apple Experts say that he made 5 critical brand mistakes:
1. Brand and culture go hand in hand You must align
employee culture with business strategy
2. Customers crave a consistent brand experience
3. Always build upon existing brand assets 4. You cant transform a company without changing the culture
5. To turn around a brand - Turn it inside out.
What is JC Penny now?
a discounting mid-tier retailer or a quality brand establishment? JC Penney is a broken company and a broken brand For a company that desperately needs new brands, potential suitors will be less likely to sign on knowing their product will likely be severely discounted under what appears to be the newest strategy.