J.C. Penney

Have you ever been browsing the shelves at J.C. Penney and thought to yourself, "Boy, I need a new haircut?" Probably not. But the department store is hoping to change that by reinventing its 850 salons across the U.S. In a new partnership with Time-owned fashion magazine InStyle, Penney's will rebrand its salons into a "modern, cutting-edge salon concept" called The Salon by InStyle. The retailer will launch the project with 15 pilot locations this summer, with the nationwide rollout planned for 2016.

J.C. Penney is gearing up for Disney's release of the live action "Cinderella" movie in theaters on March 13, hoping for another big hit like Disney's wildly popular animated feature film "Frozen." Stores are getting product for the movie, which stars Lily James as Cinderella and Cate Blanchett as the wicked stepmother. Richard Madden plays the prince. For J.C. Penney, Disney is the gift that keeps on giving, making its stores a destination for merchandise made exclusively for Penney by Disney vs. the licensed merchandise sold at other stores.

When J.C. Penney announced this month that it would shutter 40 U.S. stores, At Home Group Inc. saw an opening. Executives at the retail chain, which sells home decor in warehouses and other large spaces, checked the list of targeted stores and called J.C. Penney within a few hours to express interest in buying some of them. It helps that At Home had already researched J.C. Penney's more than 1,000 U.S. locations ahead of time, just as a shopper would gear up for a big sale.

J.C. Penney and Hallmark have decided they have a match. Last fall, the two companies tested 500-square-foot shops selling cards, gifts, gift wrap and bags in 15 Penney stores. The companies expect to move ahead with the collaboration and open more Hallmark shops in Penney stores later this year. "Our Hallmark pilot has gone well and we will be exploring additional Hallmark shops inside J.C.Penney later this spring," said Penney spokeswoman Sarah Holland.

J.C. Penney is bringing back its print catalog five years after ditching it to focus on the web, The Wall Street Journal reported. The retailer stopped mailing the "Big Book" catalog in 2009 and phased out its distribution of 70 smaller catalogs a year later, the Journal said. The move is substantiated with data showing that many of its online sales were driven by what the shoppers saw in print, the newspaper said. The new, 120-page book will present items from the company's home department and will be sent to select customers in March.

It's no secret that J.C. Penney has dealt with its fair share of challenges in recent years. Following the disastrous tenure of former CEO Ron Johnson, which saw the retail chain disenfranchise its loyal customer base by eliminating discounts and coupons, J.C. Penney has been left to pick up the pieces and start over again. In somewhat of an ironic twist, the traditional retail brand is counting on digital technology to get it back to its roots as The Golden Rule Store — a place that offers high-value merchandise at great prices and with great service.

J.C. Penney will close about 40 stores over the next year, according to a company spokesman. The closures will impact less than 4 percent of Penney's total store base and approximately 2,250 associates, according to spokesman Joey Thomas. Most locations will close on or about April 4, Thomas said. Penney's currently operates about 1,060 stores in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. "We continually evaluate our store portfolio to determine whether there's a need to close or relocate underperforming stores," Thomas said. "Reviews such as these are essential in meeting our long-term goals for future company growth."

Is giving to others the greatest gift of all? Even the sourest Scrooge might admit the idea has merit after checking out J.C. Penney's #JustGotJingled campaign from EVB and Victors & Spoils. J.C. Penney staffers approach customers and offer them the chance to "buy" presents for their fellow shoppers. The givers get to choose the lucky recipients (who must be strangers) and tell them they can pick out gifts for themselves from any department in the store. J.C. Penney picks up the tab, and there are no price limits or any other restrictions. 

Knit hats, "ugly sweaters," NHL jerseys, women's apparel and Derek Jeter merchandise. Those best-selling items are leading the pack at Fanatics.com, the online sports retailer that expects to process 10 times normal volume — roughly 700,000 packages — on Cyber Monday. In addition to running Fanatics.com, the retailer also powers 300 websites for all the major U.S. sports leagues, as well as collegiate and other professional teams, and some retailers such as J.C. Penney. "Today will be the single biggest sales day in the history of our company," Fanatics CEO Doug Mack said. 

This is the first Christmas in four years that J.C. Penney isn't confusing customers by discontinuing merchandise, killing coupons, introducing brands or having big chunks of its stores under construction. And its merchants and marketers have had a full year to plan Christmas 2014 without a revolving door of its leadership and radical changes in pricing strategy or product mix. "Last year, we didn't have a lot of lead time, but we did have a point of view with our ‘jingle more bells’ campaign," said Deb Berman, senior vice president of marketing.