J.C. Penney

Mike Ullman, the present CEO of J.C. Penney, will relinquish that post at the end of June 2015. He will stay on as non-executive chairman for a year. Marvin Ellison, president and chief executive-in waiting, will succeed Mr. Ullman in that position. While I haven't yet met with Ullman's successor, I have heard and read good things about him and sense that he motivates associates to do their best. He will certainly need that leadership skill. Ellison will have his hands full.

J.C. Penney is bolstering its mobile strategy by teaming up with visual product search platform Slyce, following in the footsteps of Amazon.com, Macy's and other retailers that are leveraging image recognition to enable consumers to snap photos and view similar items. J.C. Penney has had a relatively quiet start to 2015 in terms of mobile, and is likely aiming to keep up with other retailers by ensuring that its products are easily searchable via mobile devices. Slyce predicts that visual search options will become requisite for brands in the near future, as it ultimately provides instant answers to time-strapped consumers.

The bad news continues for J.C. Penney. At the end of February, its stock tanked following the announcement of disappointing profit numbers for 2014. Its chief marketing officer, Debra Berman, left abruptly in mid-March, followed, on March 20, by general counsel Janet Dhillon. Now Fortune has learned that a former employee, Robert Blatchford, has filed a claim against the company under Florida's Private Whistleblower Act. The case — which could lead to deposition testimony by former CEO Ron Johnson — brings back to life a dark period in J.C. Penney's history. 

J.C. Penney's chief marketing officer Deb Berman has resigned. She joined Plano, Texas-based Penney in August 2013 from Kraft Foods Group where she was vice president of marketing strategy and engagement. Penney said in a statement Tuesday that Berman's departure was her decision. "J.C. Penney is grateful for her service, and we wish her well in all future endeavors," the company said. Berman was part of CEO Mike Ullman's rebuilding team after the company lost a lot of high-level talent during former CEO Ron Johnson's attempt to remake the department store in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

No, it's not a new promotion, but it is the latest excuse for J.C. Penney's holiday losses. OK, sure, the market hasn't been at its best, but shares of J.C Penney tumbled last week after the ever-struggling, emotional engagement-deficient retailer posted a loss for the holiday quarter, despite improving category sales trends. We can't quite figure out why people were surprised about the results, which was the way it was spun in the press. We weren't. Surprised, we mean. J.C. Penney had been at the bottom of our Customer Loyalty Engagement Index for a while now. 

Amazon.com and J.C. Penney are two of the top retailers that quickly responded to the worldwide social media buzz concerning a post about a dress that provoked a debate late last week over the color of the garment's stripes, underscoring how mobile moments can help brands connect with today's consumers. Late last week, Twitter and Facebook were barreled by posts from users trying to convince each other that the striped dress was black and blue or white and gold, prompting an intense debate that led to many memes, GIFs and jokes.

Retail Online Integration's fifth annual list of the leading women executives in omnichannel retail features some of the brightest minds in the industry. This year's nominees were chosen for being in a top-level position within an omnichannel retail organization, along with several other criteria, including their scope of responsibility, achievements within their own companies, and their involvement within the retail industry. Take advantage of this opportunity to learn about the career paths of some of today's leading retail experts, as well as find out what they believe will be the top tip for omnichannel retail success in 2015.

Online retailer Nasty Gal is gearing up for its brick-and-mortar moment and has brought in former Apple retail boss Ron Johnson to help guide the way. Johnson is leading a $16 million investment in the Los Angeles-based company and joining the women retailer's board of directors, founder Sophia Amoruso told Re/code. Johnson was the mastermind of Apple's retail strategy and then held the CEO role at J.C. Penney in a tumultuous stint. He's now CEO of a yet-to-launch e-commerce startup called Enjoy.

A New York state appeals court on Thursday revived most of Macy's lawsuit accusing J.C. Penney of interfering improperly with its exclusive merchandising contract with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. The 5-0 decision by the Appellate Division in Manhattan restored two claims by Macy's that a lower court judge had dismissed. It also upheld the validity of a third Macy's claim, but said Macy's didn't deserve punitive damages. Thursday's decision is the latest step in an unusual battle over the right to sell home goods from a company named for one of the most famous U.S. names in homemaking.

In part one of this series on the rumored "death of the mall," I wrote about the potential for e-commerce and social media to keep consumers online and out of the once-crowded malls. However, as anyone who has gone shopping on Black Friday can attest, the modern mall is anything but deserted. In fact, social media can play a significant role in getting consumers engaged online, and your company's savvy data mining and social monitoring can help it better understand its target customer.