J.C. Penney is doubling down on its dedication to working households for the vacations with a advertising and marketing technique centered round in-person procuring experiences, high-profile partnerships and “Actually Large Deal Reveals.” The retailer’s plans, unveiled Thursday, additionally concentrate on its revamped loyalty program.
J.C. Penney detailed its This autumn technique at a digital briefing hosted by CEO Marc Rosen and Chief Merchandising and Provide Chain Officer Michelle Wlazlo. Guiding the seasonal playbook is a $1 billion turnaround plan applied final September that launched a “Make It Depend” model positioning round affordability, loyalty, neighborhood and positivity.
“J.C. Penney is within the enterprise of bringing extra pleasure by serving to our clients make each greenback depend this vacation season,” stated Rosen. “We’re a bit of bit greater than a 12 months into our billion-dollar reinvestment into the enterprise, and we’ve made nice progress on our transformation with the aim of assembly our clients on the eye degree throughout each interplay.”
For the vacations, J.C. Penney is leaning additional right into a “Actually Large Deal Reveals” marketing campaign working on Amazon Prime Video’s “Thursday Night time Soccer.” Throughout every sport by means of Dec. 26, the retailer will announce a brand new weekly deal or unique supply for viewers. Advert spots function a swath of celebrities, together with Shaquille O’Neal and Martha Stewart.
Each weekly deal that’s a part of the marketing campaign has to date exceeded J.C. Penney’s gross sales forecast by nearly 50% for the reason that September rollout. For the inaugural promotion, the retailer offered a towel each 3.2 seconds, resulting in nearly 1 million towels offered. The trouble can also be driving a file variety of new clients into shops and on-line, in response to Rosen.
“This progress has put us in a wonderful place to fulfill clients precisely the place they want us this vacation season as we not far away, to reinvigorate the emotional connection between our clients and the J.C. Penney model,” Rosen stated.
J.C. Penney is supporting its deals-focused marketing campaign with social media, on-line video, electronic mail and in-store signage. Spanish-language advertisements will seem on different streaming providers. A concentrate on financial savings this season mirrors final 12 months’s advertising and marketing from the model, which included video advertisements selling its capability to make “each hard-earned greenback depend.”
Making it depend
Along with touting its on a regular basis gross sales pricing, J.C. Penney will supply early Black Friday entry offers from Nov. 8 to Nov. 10. A slew of different offers may even be out there from Nov. 22 to Dec. 1. For Black Friday, the retailer shall be providing one-day-only offers and in-store giveaways that can drop at 5 a.m., 9 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. and have gadgets just like the Golden Tote, which affords extra financial savings all through the vacation season.
A concentrate on affordability might assist the embattled division retailer overcome ongoing enterprise struggles. J.C. Penney reported a 9.2% year-over-year decline in whole income to $1.5 billion within the second quarter.
To bolster its turnaround, J.C. Penney earlier this month named Marisa Thalberg as consulting chief advertising and marketing officer. The chief shared the information in a LinkedIn publish, describing the 122-year-old division retailer as “ripe for reinvigoration.” Round different facets of its transformation, the corporate has accomplished about 133 retailer refreshes to date, Rosen shared.
“We’re discovering that accomplished shops are trending three to 5 factors greater when it comes to web promoter scores based mostly on current surveys, so sturdy outcomes from our reworked shops,” Rosen stated.
Moreover, J.C. Penney in April launched its revamped J.C. Penney Rewards and Credit score Program, which it stated might ship half a billion {dollars} to its customers. The retailer is doubling down on loyalty for the vacations by touting its rewards advantages, like the flexibility to earn no less than one CashPass level for each greenback spent. The relaunch of the J.C. Penney Rewards and Credit score Program additionally doubled the speed at which rewards members earn factors. Over the past 12 months, the model has seen a 25% improve in rewards enrollment, Rosen stated.
“This worth proposition shall be entrance and heart by means of initiatives throughout the season,” Rosen stated.
Mixing nostalgia, partnership
J.C. Penney can also be nodding to its previous by bringing again the J.C. Penney Snow Globe giveaway for the primary time since 2015. The collectible miniature, which turned one thing of a convention amongst households in its prior iterations, shall be out there in-stores starting at 5 a.m. on Black Friday and this 12 months nods to the film “Elf.”
Excessive-profile partnerships spherical out the This autumn technique. Notably, the retailer is increasing its partnership with Martha Stewart for The Martha Stewart Vacation Assortment, which is on the market now in-stores and on-line. J.C. Penney can also be the one U.S. retailer carrying soccer icon Lionel Messi’s first perfume, and a present set shall be out there all through the season.
Elsewhere on the partnership entrance, the model has teamed with candymaker Haribo for a clothes line dropping Nov. 7 on-line and in choose shops for younger adults, teenagers and children. Further seasonal fashions shall be out there with J.C. Penney and superstar costume designer Johnny Wujek’s “Have fun” assortment, which is on the market Nov. 1.
Together with Black Friday procuring experiences, J.C. Penney is vying for extra foot site visitors by way of its magnificence class by means of a partnership with hairstylist Larry Sims for a SimStyled expertise. Out there in choose salon areas starting Nov. 18, the expertise affords a styling menu of texture hair seems for customers that can change seasonally.
Whereas in-store is in focus, J.C. Penney can also be shoring up its on-line presence, Rosen stated, a method knowledgeable by market share knowledge indicating that at the moment’s clients need to off-price gadgets and are procuring extra on-line. Collectively, the corporate’s omnichannel technique is meant to make sure customers are met the place they’re, from each a location and worth standpoint, the exec defined.
“When you consider the areas that we’ve invested, that’s why we made a big funding in jcp.com, and we’ve seen good development there, and it’s additionally why we’re ensuring that now we have the most effective worth,” Rosen stated. “That we’re at all times in inventory and we’re utilizing our instruments to verify now we have the fitting product in the fitting locations for the fitting buyer.”
