J.C. Penney CEO Says Store Closings Coming

J.C. Penney’s top executive Marvin Ellison said that the company is planning to close some if its 1,014 stores. He didn’t give specifics on when the store closings will occur or how many stores will be closing, but last year, J.C. Penney closed seven stores mostly in smaller markets. Ellison said at a Dallas real estate conference earlier this week that store closings are the hardest decisions to make because they result in job losses.

Total Retail’s Take: J.C. Penney is the latest mall chain to announce store closings. Macy’s recently announced that it’s closing 68 of its 730 stores, and The Limited — the oldest mall specialty apparel chain — is shuttering all of its stores. Even Wal-Mart is reportedly laying off corporate employees in the near future. I expect to see more of the same as 2017 continues.