JCPenney ditches furniture & home appliances to focus on apparel

JCPenney has announced it will no longer sell furniture and major home appliances in its stores, effective February 28. Furniture will only be available on the company’s ecommerce and select Puerto Rico stores. Mattresses continue to be offered as usual.

The decision may come as a surprise, as JCPenney brought these categories back to the stores less than three years ago, following a 33-year hiatus. In a statement, the company said it will focus on apparel and soft home furnishings, two product categories which represent “higher margin opportunities”.

The decision is part of a plan to make the department store chain profitable again -- it doesn’t turn a profit since 2010. “We are taking the necessary steps to right-size our inventory positions to better support the brands and categories that are demonstrating profitable sales growth. While restoring JCPenney to sustained profitable growth will be a lengthy process, I understand the need for quick action”, said the company’s CEO, Jill Soltau, when announcing the company’s Q3 2018 results: a comparable sales decrease of 5.4 percent, and net loss of 151 million dollars or 0.48 cents per share.

With furniture and home appliances gone, JCPenney stores will soon get “new layouts” which the company hopes will “maximize efficiencies, reduce inventory and create an enhanced shopping experience that inspires repeat shopping trips”.

Picture: courtesy of JCPenney