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Future of JCPenney in Batavia in doubt after chain announces plans to close up to 140 stores

By Howard B. Owens

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National retailer JCPenney reported today a continued decline in sales and as a result the intention to close from 130 to 140 stores nationwide.

The list of stores that will be closed has not been released, so we don't know yet if the Batavia location will be on the chopping block.

The Batavia store has survived a previous round of JCPenney's cost-cutting.

According to Reuters, JCPenney continues to struggle in an era of dying shopping malls and increased competition from online retailers.

The store in Batavia is the lone anchor tenant of the long-struggling City Centre Mall in Downtown.

City Manager Jason Molino told WBTA, “We just spoke with JCPenney as early as last week. They did not relay that message to us and they did not tell us that was going to be the case, so as far as we know that is new news or it's nothing that I can confirm.”

tom hunt

According to the financial wizard Jim Cramer, most retails stores except Home Depot, Wal Mart and a hand full of others are doomed to die in a death spiral. They can't compete with the 800 pound gorilla called Amazon.com and other on line shopping web sties.

Feb 24, 2017, 12:18pm Permalink
Howard B. Owens

And Cramer is wrong (as he usually is)

Any retail businesses trying to compete on the basis of scale (such as Walmart) are doomed. Amazon and digital in general will beat any physical outlet chain on scale.

Home Depot's products in general lend themselves better to immediate physical proximity than general retail, but general retail is doomed.

The way going forward to succeed in physical retail is in the area of in-store experience. Provide a great in-store experience and that will have value to customers.

This reality is, I think, shifts advantage back to locally owned retail after an ear where that sector was largely decimated by Walmart. Now Walmart is on the run. Scale and supply chain management is not the advantage for them that it once was.

Feb 24, 2017, 12:37pm Permalink
John Roach

The one advantage our Penny's has is that the store is owned by the company, where the others are leased. Ownership might not save them, but it is one edge they have.

Feb 24, 2017, 1:35pm Permalink

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