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It's no secret that American department stores are having a rough time. Many are closing hundreds of stores and cutting way back on workforce. For a while, it looked like JCPenney would join competitor Sears on its downward spiral. Last year, "Penney's" was forced to close around 140 stores and layoff nearly 5,000 people.
Then, after a series of big moves at the top of the company, as well as new initiatives, JCPenney seemed poised to pull out of the slide. Things were looking up, and the brand appeared ready for a comeback.
As it turns out, news of the company's imminent turnaround may have been premature. The early part of 2018 has been every bit as "brutal" as the worst parts of 2017. The Associated Press and CNN are reporting that JCPenney plans to lay off another 360 people, at both retail and corporate locations. And that's just the beginning of the bad news. Earnings predictions are out, and JCPenney is predicting to do even worse than expected in 2018. The news caused Penney's stock to drop by double digits.
