J.C. Penney kicks off brand campaign
NEW YORK (Reuters) - J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (JCP.N) launched its new marketing campaign late on Tuesday at a red-carpet event in New York that mixed the mid-tier department store's name-brand merchandise with name-brand celebrities, like singer Jewel and actress Andie MacDowell.
J.C. Penney's new campaign, with the slogan "Every Day Matters," builds on the retailer's efforts to convince shoppers that it has shed its dowdy image and become a stylish retailer stocked with fashionable merchandise.
"We're bringing a fresh new look to our customers," said Chris Madden, who designs home goods for the retailer and was standing by a line of her bedroom furniture as guests walked by sipping martinis, eating hors d'oeuvres and listening to music.
Suspended from the ceiling were large red boxes with slogans like "Today's the day to indulge" hanging over a display of Penney's jewelry and lingerie, or "Today's the day to fall in love" over a display of its bridal registry offerings.
The "Every Day Matters" ads, which Penney said will focus on selling an "experience" and not just "merchandise," will premiere during the Academy Awards telecast later this month.
"It's the Super Bowl for our customers," said J.C. Penney Chief Executive Myron "Mike" Ullman, comparing the awards show telecast, which is heavily watched by women, to the biggest single U.S. sporting event of the year.
One of the ads will feature Ambrielle -- Penney's new private brand of lingerie that is hitting stores this month.
Bernard Sosnick, a retail analyst with Oppenheimer, said the new slogan should resonate with shoppers because it will be backed by better designed private brands and an improved shopping experience.
"It aims to position Penney as an alternative to department stores and an aspirational alternative to Target," he wrote in a note to investors on Tuesday. "The objective is to separate Penney from the sea of retail sameness."
Penney said the new marketing campaign will help support the 2007 to 2011 long-range plan it will outline at its analyst meeting in April.
Penney said it will involve its sales associates in the new campaign, giving them training to get them more engaged with customers.
"It's about building a relationship instead of a transaction," Ullman said.
Earlier in the day, Ullman told a Citigroup retail conference that J.C. Penney can sell more to existing customers and attract new ones.
Penney's branding campaign was developed by the retailer's new advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi, a unit of France's Publicis (PUBP.PA).
J.C. Penney shares closed up 86 cents, or about 1 percent, to $83.34 on the New York Stock Exchange.
(Additional reporting by Karen Jacobs in Atlanta)
