JCPenney Names Former Levi Strauss Executive as CEO

JCPenney has named former Levi Strauss & Co. executive Marc Rosen as CEO, nine months after the retailer's former chief executive, Jill Soltau, left the company. Rosen, who also spent 14 years in senior leadership roles at Walmart, will begin at JCPenney on Nov. 1.

Stanley Shashoua, chief investment officer at JCPenney, had been serving as interim CEO since Soltau's departure in January. The department store chain announced that Shashoua had been appointed executive chairman of its board of directors.

Shashoua said in a press release that Rosen's "significant e-commerce and retail experience makes him the perfect fit to lead the next chapter of the company's transformation as we work to better serve our customers."

Total Retail's Take: Rosen is tasked with navigating JCPenney through recovery after the retailer emerged from bankruptcy with the sale of the company to mall owners Simon Property Group and Brookfield Asset Management, as well as recovery from the pandemic which has dealt a significant blow to many traditional brick-and-mortar retail chains. He has been credited for driving Levi's digital strategy, and those skills will certainly be an asset to JCPenney as it works to digitally transform itself in a fast-changing retail landscape.

When J.C. Penney first announced its search for a new CEO, the company said it wanted someone who "is focused on modern retail, the consumer experience, and a goal of creating a sustainable and enduring JCPenney." Rosen has been tapped as that leader; now all he needs to do is deliver.