From Businessweek:
JC Penney Co. said Tuesday it will open Sephora stores within its department stores starting this fall, under an agreement with the high-end cosmetics retailer aimed at luring young female customers.Sephora will open “store-within-stores” and be the exclusive seller of beauty products in JCPenney, which has been trying to shed its image as a middle-market department store operator with younger, more modern merchandise and marketing.
I think this will be a positive strategic relationship and a winning move for JC Penney’s. Sephora has good brand recognition in the cosmetics industry, allowing JC Penney a great avenue to attract younger, female consumers. As I talked about over the weekend, JC Penney is in a good position to turnaround their business. This partnership will get talked about and will drive people into the stores as long as it is executed well.
As more details are revealed, the key to this deal is execution. It will be important the physical space is exciting yet seamless in regards to the independent branding of both JC Penney and Sephora. Bring in well trained, indepdent, Sephora associates and let them do their work.
This move will benefit both companies involved. JC Penney will attract a new demographic and Sephora will be able to grow into physical areas that they may not otherwise be able to, logistically. This will be a move to keep an eye out for.
And also, this will give more people the ability to buy Jonathan Product and that isn’t a bad thing, either.
