Has your JCPenney store changed a lot?

[klmama]

I don't shop much, but Penney's has always been my go-to store for certain items.  I was there this weekend, and I was very surprised at the changes.  They seem to have really cut back on staff.  Instead of the 2-3 employees they used to have at each group of registers, there was only one cashier working at each of the locations.  The cashiers didn't have radios to call for more assistance, so any customers that asked for help on the floor were out of luck.  The shoe department is self-serve.  Throughout the store, the lack of staff was reflected in the disorganization of the stock - in all areas, not just the clearance racks.  It looked the way the store usually does on the afternoon of Black Friday after all of the a.m. chaos, only this was on a normal Saturday morning.  Is this company-wide, or just my local store?   

[Arcadia]

The local JCPenneys renovated and looked different. They still have the same amount of staff as a comparable size Macy's or Nordstrom or Bloomingdales. The local JCP stores have less staff than our local Target stores all along. Mess is typically on Monday morning opening time, not weekends.

[Farrar]

That's how it's looked for the last several years here. The mess thing... it waxes and wanes. I'm not there but a couple times a year, but I anticipate it, honestly. Nordstrom is the only department store (Target included) that keeps things neat around here. Sometimes when I go to suburban, less trafficked stores, they are much neater, but in high volume sales stores, I get that it's hard.

[Ann.without.an.e]

I think the company is struggling.  Ours here is going out of business.

 

[Mothersweets]

Yeah, I pretty much don't go to my local Penney's any more. It is all kind of a jumble-y mess. It's a shame, I use to be able to find some cute things there. 

[Chris in VA]

My mom used to work at Penneys--it was such a nice store.Now it has such sucky clothes for dd and me. Shoes are still ok, but no help, and things in disarray. Men's dept still ok, too. 

[Guest]

I haven't shopped at ours in years. But ours was never impressive. Like most stores, the internet hit the hard.

[desertstrawberry5]

I can only remember shopping there once, for maternity clothes when I was in school, preparing to go to work lo this many years ago. I happened upon a clearance sale and got lots of cute clothes that I would never wear again. 

What does one normally buy there?

I remember my mother going, but I don't know for what. I know they have been in and out of bankruptcy a few times, even before the internet. I think they had a big catalog department many years ago? 
 

 

[cjzimmer1]

I pretty much stopped going when they tried their no sale thing because their supposedly everyday prices were significantly higher than what I was accustomed/willing to pay. I've been in a couple of time since but not much.  I can't say the store is messy but I can't remember ever going to Penney's and seeing more than one person per station.  I always wondered why they had so many stations when no one was ever working them.

[Lanny]

I haven't read about struggling brick and mortar Retailers for probably a couple of months, but my belief is that JC Penney is next in line, after Sears and K-Mart stores.   With the kind of disarray and lack of help that you describe, it is hard to imagine someone finding shopping there to be a decent experience.  Sad.   Yes, like Sears, JC Penney did have a large Catalog operation, for many years.  

[Crimson Wife]

Yes, our local store has gone upscale-looking recently. It used to be more down-market like Sears and Kohl's. Now it seems like it is trying to compete with Macy's and Nordstrom Rack. I never used to find anything I liked there but I've bought several things in the past year.

[heartlikealion]

I think the company is struggling.  Ours here is going out of business.

 

Yeah.

 

I went shopping at one around Easter and I don't know if they had any associates on the floor. I remember there was a line for checkout. Of course, that was a busy weekend.

[Arcadia]

I always wondered why they had so many stations when no one was ever working them.

The cashier counters are staffed during the usual sales seasons like Memorial Day, Labor Day, Black Friday. They also have more cashier counters open in the evenings than daytime. Their staffing pattern is similar to Macy's.

[tdbates78]

We have a new-ish freestanding Penny's in our town and its definitely changed from the stores of my childhood. Ours is clearly trying to be more hip. Less houseware items. It has lower ceilings with exposed ductwork and feels very cluttered because the store just isn't very big. Not my cup of tea.

[Erica in OR]

Ours never had staff roaming around to help answer questions—it was all self-serve, including the dressing rooms. It ended up on the list of stores the company was closing. Disappointing, as it was one of few places in town to get decent women's clothing that is not too expensive.

 

Erica in OR

[Tap]

Ours is inbetween what you experienced.

 

~It isn't too messy but not tidy like Nordstroms.

~Low staff, good luck getting help.

~Low stock of sizes...they push the 'we will order it for you'. 

~Long waits at the registers. A year ago I was buying something and the clerk was answering the main phone line mid-transaction.  That was the last time I bought anything there.  I couldn't believe how rude it was. I had to wait while she looked something up on the computer for someone on the phone. If I didn't really need what I was buying, I would have walked away. I made a comment about it and she said it was required for them to answer it. 

~Overall the store looks low end. Cheap displays. (bent arms on racks/ mismatched displays). Intercom systems squeaks and makes horrible noises every time they use it.

 

 

DD and I were there the other day, getting her hair cut.  The parking lot was nearly empty. maybe 10 cars and that probably included the staff.  We commented on how bad it must be, for an anchor store in a mall to have an empty parking lot.   The other four anchor stores (Macys, Sears and Golds Gym) all had full lots as we left. 

[PinkyandtheBrains.]

Ours is closing. The company has been closing quite a few stores around the country.

 

I just lucked out and found a lot of items on extra clearance out for my husband and my oldest.  $2-3 shirts, $5 pants, $6 for sweaters. 

[klmama]

The parking lot was nearly empty. maybe 10 cars and that probably included the staff.  We commented on how bad it must be, for an anchor store in a mall to have an empty parking lot.   The other four anchor stores (Macys, Sears and Golds Gym) all had full lots as we left. 

 

Our Penney's still has a full lot and store - just not much staff.  The Sears lot is almost empty, and the store is both poorly stocked and staffed.  It makes me wonder why they are still open.  

[gstharr]

I know that I bought a friendship ring for a high school sweetheart in 1978. But, I have not shopped there for anything after I finished college.

[4kidlets4me]

Ours is terrible. Always messy, only one dressing room open in the whole store, no employees, hardly any selection. If it's not closing it should since it's horrible trying to shop in there. 

[gardenmom5]

Our local penny's closed several years ago. Now it's online or I have to drive 30+ minutes.

[TrixieB]

The two JCPenney stores near me are well stocked.  Depending on how busy the store is, there are 1-4 people working at the checkout.  I buy a lot of my clothes and my kids' clothes there. 

[Janeway]

It has been awful. And the entire staff at one store is one race and at another store, mostly that same race, and very few working and takes forever to check out. I have no idea what the deal is over the racial thing. It used to be diverse, nothing to notice. And now, you go in, and they are short staffed and the people they have are just one race and the variety of people they used to have have disappeared and it happened very quickly, like over night. 

Edited September 13, 2017 by Janeway

[Cinder]

My local JCP is a free-standing store and has been pretty busy every time I've been there. It has a Sephora that you can sometimes smell before you even enter the store.  :thumbdown:  The checkout line is all at the front; no individual department registers like the old days. The store is pretty tidy but not a lot of staff. We occasionally shop there for men's clothes for dh and ds but have better luck finding women's and juniors things at Kohls.

[laundrycrisis]

Ours is a new one like Cinder's.  They closed the old one at the mall and opened a new freestanding one in a busy shopping center.  It is modern and bright.  I bought a new winter coat there last winter.  It was also the only place I could find non boot cut jeans for DS1 when he needed 27x34.  I have bought dress clothes for both boys there.  If I needed office job clothes, I would head there first.  My only complaint is that the registers up front are often very slow. 

[HS Mom in NC]

Our is not messy.  It's got a Sephora and so high volume there is a one line for the customers that feeds into a row of a dozen registers on each side of the front entrance. I've never seen fewer than 6 cashiers in that row working at once.

I hope ours stays open because they carry petite sizes.

[Baseball mom]

Ours changed, it closed down.