February 14, 2006
It’s All Inside the Big Red Virtual Box
By George Anderson
J.C. Penney is determined to make consumers believe that it, whatever that may be, is really inside its stores.
The department store chain is set to launch the largest branding event in its history with a 15,000-square-foot virtual store in New York’s Times Square to coincide with its sponsorship of the Academy Awards and a new campaign to promote Penney’s private and exclusive label brands.
The “JCPenney Experience” store will open for business for three weeks beginning on March 3. The temporary or pop-up store will be modeled to look like the company’s signature big red box. Inside will be interactive kiosks that will allow consumers to purchase from the retailer’s “full range of merchandise.”
“The JCPenney Experience will be a dramatic statement reflective of the changes taking place at JCPenney,” said Myron (Mike) Ullman, chairman and chief executive officer of the company in a released statement. “From one of the most visible and visited spots in the world, JCPenney will highlight all that is new at our company. Shoppers will see that we are listening to what they tell us and focusing our brands and assortments to reflect their lifestyles, from trendy and modern to traditional and conservative. They will also experience first-hand the incredible power of www.jcp.com, the largest online department store in the world.”
Mr. Ullman added, “Taken together, the full-scale branding campaign we are launching is designed to reinforce for our current customers JCPenney’s commitment to offering exciting styles at smart prices in an easy, convenient shopping environment and make clear to new customers that it really is ‘all inside’ at JCPenney.”
The company will support its new branding initiative with broadcast and print advertising. The company has also announced a marketing alliance with AOL/Yahoo, which will allow customers to view the company’s TV advertisements online and click to buy featured merchandise.
Moderator’s Comment: Have the frequency of retailers opening pop-up stores begun to erode their effectiveness as a buzz-generating vehicle? What are
your thoughts on the J.C. Penney Experience? –
George Anderson – Moderator
BrainTrust
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The observations about Wall Street are apt, but all in all, I think it’s a good move. You get lots of out-of-town visitors to Times Square (although for the life of me I cannot understand why), and it’s bound to make an impression on several different layers of the target for Penney. As for pop-ups in general, I think they have lots of legs left. We’re close to it and become aware of them all, but the Average Joe Consumer still finds lots of novelty, I believe. All good moves for JCPenney; and a little overdue.
This is a great promotional, marketing and advertising idea. JCPenney is taking full advantage of the current hype which pop-up stores bring, plus building a new “chic” around their concept. Tying this into their sponsorship with other companies and events is just maximizing their promotional vehicles effectiveness. Add to this the ability of Wall Street to see the new direction of this retailer, and you have a great recipe for success. This is just smart brand positioning, and something which everyone should be doing as they re-examine their company’s position in the retail marketplace.
It certainly sounds cool and fun and likely to attract people. The idea is something that I have never heard of in England so it’s interesting to me that you are already questioning whether such promotions are getting to be stale in the US. It will be even more interesting to see if anyone over here picks up the idea and runs with it.
This is JCP’s preemptive strike, something about Texans?
In September, Macy’s will be at the end of over 400 new malls. Add to that the new discounter fashion launches by Wal-Mart: Metro 7 and Target: Luella. Plus Talbot’s buy of J.Jill. All in all, plenty of pressure to maintain share of middle market fashion dollars.
On top of that, JCP wants an emotional connection with its shopper. Guess it will be forced to move beyond aggressive off price promotion to drive the business.
A pop up store on Times Square, why not? New campaign on your 10+ year sponsorship of the Oscars? Sure. Lifestyle merchandising? Sounds great! Relevant and national brands? All the better! Is the roll up buzz-worthy?
Good luck JCP. Retail ain’t for sissies!
The question is, “is this type of event now passe?” No. Has it lost some of the hype associated with doing something unique and unprecedented? Yes. However, all successful marketing techniques follow this path. The predecessor events were “successful” (whatever that means), so it makes sense that there will be followers.
I’m sure that JCP would argue that it’s event is different. Certainly it appears to be bigger and better. Without actually attending, it’s impossible to judge. On the surface, this feels like the “bigger is better,” and “more” approach to marketing. Not surprising, in that this type of event does require “more” in order to have a similar impact to the originating events. Think Super Bowl commercials. Has the point of diminishing returns been reached? Probably.
I don’t see any harm in JCPenney following Target, Sears, and others into Manhattan show-off territory. After all, it’s the fashion capital of the U.S. and as Macy’s has known for years, THE place to set your brand(s) in motion. Beyond that, as a successful internet player, their alliance with AOL/Yahoo is a worthy announcement. For retailers with deep pockets, pop-up stores are a great way to control brand launches and messaging on the front end however, they’ll soon want to figure out how to do that in multiple locations and for longer periods!
Any publicly-held Manhattan pop-up has suspect motives, since New York is the finance capital of the country. Publicly-held retailers all want their stock to go up and all feel they are unappreciated. JCPenney has no Manhattan department store, so it appears that this location is for pitching the stock. Certainly the time of year is less than ideal, since the best time to publicize a department store is Christmas, not Easter. The Academy Awards are only presented once a year, so Penney’s ad push will lack consistent repetition, a necessary ingredient for brand building. The money spent for these moves might be better spent elsewhere. BTW, I think Penney’s has a terrific management. I just don’t agree with all their decisions.
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The observations about Wall Street are apt, but all in all, I think it’s a good move. You get lots of out-of-town visitors to Times Square (although for the life of me I cannot understand why), and it’s bound to make an impression on several different layers of the target for Penney. As for pop-ups in general, I think they have lots of legs left. We’re close to it and become aware of them all, but the Average Joe Consumer still finds lots of novelty, I believe. All good moves for JCPenney; and a little overdue.
This is a great promotional, marketing and advertising idea. JCPenney is taking full advantage of the current hype which pop-up stores bring, plus building a new “chic” around their concept. Tying this into their sponsorship with other companies and events is just maximizing their promotional vehicles effectiveness. Add to this the ability of Wall Street to see the new direction of this retailer, and you have a great recipe for success. This is just smart brand positioning, and something which everyone should be doing as they re-examine their company’s position in the retail marketplace.
It certainly sounds cool and fun and likely to attract people. The idea is something that I have never heard of in England so it’s interesting to me that you are already questioning whether such promotions are getting to be stale in the US. It will be even more interesting to see if anyone over here picks up the idea and runs with it.
This is JCP’s preemptive strike, something about Texans?
In September, Macy’s will be at the end of over 400 new malls. Add to that the new discounter fashion launches by Wal-Mart: Metro 7 and Target: Luella. Plus Talbot’s buy of J.Jill. All in all, plenty of pressure to maintain share of middle market fashion dollars.
On top of that, JCP wants an emotional connection with its shopper. Guess it will be forced to move beyond aggressive off price promotion to drive the business.
A pop up store on Times Square, why not? New campaign on your 10+ year sponsorship of the Oscars? Sure. Lifestyle merchandising? Sounds great! Relevant and national brands? All the better! Is the roll up buzz-worthy?
Good luck JCP. Retail ain’t for sissies!
The question is, “is this type of event now passe?” No. Has it lost some of the hype associated with doing something unique and unprecedented? Yes. However, all successful marketing techniques follow this path. The predecessor events were “successful” (whatever that means), so it makes sense that there will be followers.
I’m sure that JCP would argue that it’s event is different. Certainly it appears to be bigger and better. Without actually attending, it’s impossible to judge. On the surface, this feels like the “bigger is better,” and “more” approach to marketing. Not surprising, in that this type of event does require “more” in order to have a similar impact to the originating events. Think Super Bowl commercials. Has the point of diminishing returns been reached? Probably.
I don’t see any harm in JCPenney following Target, Sears, and others into Manhattan show-off territory. After all, it’s the fashion capital of the U.S. and as Macy’s has known for years, THE place to set your brand(s) in motion. Beyond that, as a successful internet player, their alliance with AOL/Yahoo is a worthy announcement. For retailers with deep pockets, pop-up stores are a great way to control brand launches and messaging on the front end however, they’ll soon want to figure out how to do that in multiple locations and for longer periods!
Any publicly-held Manhattan pop-up has suspect motives, since New York is the finance capital of the country. Publicly-held retailers all want their stock to go up and all feel they are unappreciated. JCPenney has no Manhattan department store, so it appears that this location is for pitching the stock. Certainly the time of year is less than ideal, since the best time to publicize a department store is Christmas, not Easter. The Academy Awards are only presented once a year, so Penney’s ad push will lack consistent repetition, a necessary ingredient for brand building. The money spent for these moves might be better spent elsewhere. BTW, I think Penney’s has a terrific management. I just don’t agree with all their decisions.