• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer, 7 hours ago

 
JCPenney continues to believe that people are paying more attention to their sense of humor and retail regrets than they are to their shrinking wallets. The latest installment in the retailer’s “Yes, JCPenney!” campaign is a delightful send-up of all the mistakes consumers have ever made at off-price retailers, all wrapped up in a four-minute reality show.

The campaign is aimed at shoppers who have lost themselves to off-price. “These people are victims,” says the retreat leader, who has brought six genuine shoppers together for healing, which includes a clothing cleanse. She, too, is in recovery. “The last pair of sandals I bought in one of those stores? I found them inside a pot.”

The company is even turning regrets into rewards, allowing people to bring in any retail regret to a JCPenney store nationwide and trade it in for $15 off a $50 purchase. (They’ll donate these disasters to Good360, a nonprofit.)

In the ad, these shoppers chant: “No, I will not be able to get that stain out at home” and “I am worth more than the bra I found in the cookware section.” And in a truth-telling conclusion on a cliff’s edge, they toss away their worst mistakes (like collapsible dog bowls that they thought were something else and old bags of fall-themed potpourri), and pledge to leave their destructive deal-seeking ways behind them.

A spokesperson tells Retail Insider that the long ad, as well as two 15-second cutdowns, are running on online video, including YouTube and Meta.

The company says the new campaign is based on its latest customer satisfaction research, with 88% of shoppers agreeing that it is easy to shop at JCPenney, and 76% saying they found what they came for, in their size. And 92% are confident they’ve gotten a good deal.

People don't want less, said Marisa Thalberg, executive vice president, chief customer and marketing officer for Catalyst Brands, in a statement, but they do want better -- in terms of prices, quality and shopping experiences. The ads also highlight the many name brands available at JCPenney, including  Nike, Levi's, and Frye & Co., as well as the retailer’s private labels, including John’s Bay, Arizona, and Liz Claiborne. “Consider this our invitation to discover that style, quality and value really can exist together, without tradeoffs,” she said.

JCPenney and rival Kohl’s are, more or less, America’s last remaining Middle American department stores. And it makes sense for JCPenney to take such a sharp dig at off-price labels. While JCPenney and Kohl’s sales are declining, off-price brands, led by TJX Cos., which owns TJMaxx, Marshalls and HomeGoods; Ross Stores and Burlington Outlets, are gaining ground.

Those retail channels have been adding market share, as pressured consumers keep moving to new channels to make their budgets stretch further. “We continue to believe that off-price retail remains a long-term structural share gainer,” writes Krisztina Katai, an analyst who follows retail for Deutsche Bank. TJX “has a long history of navigating pullbacks in consumer spending and correcting merchandising assortments following fashion missteps,” she notes, turning over inventory six times a year.

And there are indications that JCPenney’s light-hearted repositioning and its “Yes, JCPenney” affirmation isn’t quite resonating, at least not yet.

JCPenney's total first-quarter sales fell 4.6% year over year to $1.25 billion, in a period where others -- including Macy’s and Dillard’s on the higher end and off-price stores, Target and Walmart, on the lower end -- saw relatively stronger gains.