JCPenney 2009 Annual Report Download - page 5

Off to a Running Start on Our New Long-Range
Plan for 2010-2014
Five years ago we introduced a Long-Range Plan for growth.
Given the circumstances of the last two years, putting this Plan
on hold and creating a Bridge Plan was the right course for us
and is reected in the strong position our Company is in today.
We ended 2009 with $3 billion of cash on our balance sheet,
and we will leverage this nancial strength as we launch our
new 2010-2014 Long-Range Plan for growth.
Our vision is to be “America’s shopping destination for
discovering great styles at compelling prices” by building
the satisfaction, loyalty and shopping frequency of our existing
customers and growing our market share, especially among
younger customers. This means consistently reinforcing our
style authority and affordability and building a sense of
discovery for our customers every time they shop with us.
Critical to our success is having the best team of Associates
in retail. To this end, we are dedicated to an engaged culture
focused on innovation and teamwork. Together, our team is
committed to establishing JCPenney as the growth leader in
our industry, increasing our sales and market share, maintaining
our gross margin to maximize earnings potential, and delivering
enhanced value for our stockholders.
As we do this, we benet from the wise counsel of our Board
of Directors. We welcome the newest addition to our Board,
Geraldine Laybourne, who founded Oxygen Media, a pioneering
network that produces content aimed at younger women.
My deepest thanks go to our Associates for their unwavering
focus on teamwork and showing our customers that we
know “Every Day Matters®” at JCPenney; our Board for their
contributions to planning our successful future; and our
stockholders for your continued investment… we are all
committed to delivering for you.
Myron E. (Mike) Ullman, III
Chairman and Chief Executive Ofcer
April 2010
• Providing ongoing CustomerFIRST training and leadership
development opportunities for our Associates. The result is
that our Associate Engagement scores continue to increase,
which translates into ongoing gains in our customer service
scores. We are proud that in 2009, for the second year in a
row, JCPenney ranked No. 1 in customer service among
department stores in the American Express/National Retail
Federation Foundation Customers’ Choice survey.
• Creating a new clearance strategy called “Red Zone
Clearance,” which more clearly communicates the true “out the
door” price to simplify the purchase decision for our customers.
We were able to accomplish all of this even though we
reduced capital expenditures to $600 million in 2009, versus
approximately $1 billion in the prior year. We are planning for
capital expenditures to be $500 million in 2010.
Exciting New Brands in 2010
Taken together, we have a strong platform from which to
achieve our top goal in 2010 — restoring comparable store
sales growth. Our strategies to do this include demonstrating
that JCPenney is a style destination and focusing on increasing
our market share. We expect to accomplish this by adding
exceptional new brands that continue to set us apart, including:
• Introducing Cindy Crawford’s newest collaboration with
us, One Kiss™ by Cindy Crawford®, in April. This new brand
reects how we are answering the growing demand for
fashionable ne jewelry that can be worn every day.
• Launching Liz Claiborne®, one of the country’s most
recognized women’s brands and most popular among our
core customers, for which we will be the exclusive department
store retailer, beginning this fall. We are capitalizing on this
by expanding the brand into a full lifestyle collection across
approximately 25 categories, including women’s and men’s
apparel, home and accessories.
• Focusing on making JCPenney a fast fashion destination
with the launch of MNG by Mango®. This brand, which will be
exclusive to JCPenney beginning this fall, is known for European
runway fashion at affordable prices, and will be the centerpiece
of our women’s contemporary merchandise offering.
Our vision is to be ‘America’s shopping destination for discovering
great styles at compelling prices... .’ This means consistently reinforcing
our style authority and affordability and building a sense of discovery
for our customers every time they shop with us. Mike Ullman
“
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