JCPenney’s In-Store Beauty Concept Rolling Out Nationwide
- JCPenney is introducing its new beauty concept in all of its department stores.
- The concept — JCPenney Beauty — is focused on merchandising diverse brands.
- It replaces Sephora stores inside JCPenney locations, which will close by early next year.
JCPenney will launch its omnichannel, inclusive beauty concept nationwide beginning in October after it debuted in a few stores last year, the company announced in a release.
The concept, dubbed JCPenney Beauty, is a diversity- and inclusion-focused in-store and online experience that the department store activated in ten pilot locations last year. The retailer said it plans to have the concept rolled out to 300 of its stores by early 2023 and to 600 of its stores by spring. Stores that do not have the concept by the end of this year will have an assortment of products from the line available by the holiday season, the retailer said in the release.
“By creating a fully ownable beauty experience, JCPenney can quickly adapt and respond to our customers’ wants and needs,” said Michelle Wlazlo, executive vice president and chief merchandising officer at JCPenney, in the release. “Last year’s preview launch allowed us to learn from our customers and evolve the JCPenney Beauty experience as it expands nationwide and online, making it unlike any other beauty retail experience.”
As part of the nationwide rollout, JCPenney will continue its partnership with Thirteen Lune, the e-commerce brand that highlights brands and products created by Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) founders. The retailer said Thirteen Lune would account for about 20% of all of the products sold through JCPenney Beauty.
JCPenney recently expanded its JCPenney Beauty offerings online, partnering with the artificial intelligence (AI) company Revieve to offer its consumers the option to try-on makeup virtually and receive custom skin care product recommendations, Retail Leader reported.
The nationwide rollout comes as the department store fills the gap left by Sephora, which partnered with JCPenney in 2006 but in 2020 began winding down the partnership in favor of a new deal with Kohl’s. Sephora plans to open up stores in all of Kohl’s approximately 1,100 locations.
The leftover Sephora stores inside JCPenney stores will remain open until they shift to the JCPenney Beauty concept. Sephora says all of its locations inside JCPenney stores will be closed by the end of January 2023.
JCPenney Beauty has partnered with around 100 new brands since it launched last year. More than 60 of them are BIPOC- and/or female-founded, including Relevant: Your Skin Seen by Nyakio Grieco, Reina Rebelde, Mirabella and Shades by Shan, which will launch next year, according to the retailer.