Has JC Penney started a new, forward-looking chapter in its history? One problem for me, though, is that the chain’s initial national TV ad campaign was way off the mark. It was discombobulated, and it didn’t connect. I wasn’t sure what customers were suppose to take away from the ads, what value they were articulating, or what action they were meant to inspire. And there’s a deeper problem to look at. Unfortunately, when you walk into the JC Penney store environment now, any interest or excitement they might have created doesn’t work. The stores are still the same old stores.
