JCPenney Gets Into the Remodeling Game

Since 2012, not a year has passed that JCPenney didn’t close more stores than it opened due to falling revenue. Sales last year were down 30 percent from where they were in 2011, according to Fortune. But the department store has a plan to recapture at least some of that lost revenue: home remodeling. 

“With the resurgence of the housing market, consumers are spending more than $300 billion annually to upgrade their homes since nearly two-thirds of the nation’s homes are over 30 years old,” said Marvin Ellison, chairman and CEO of JCPenney, in a release. 

The store’s remodeling service, called JCPenney Home Services, launched in late March, with six initial turnkey service offerings: heating and cooling systems, bathroom remodeling, quick-ship and installed blinds,
whole-home water solutions, awnings, and “easy-to-install” smart home devices.

In his statement, Ellison explained that, in particular, JCPenney Home Services will cater to female home-owners, who represent more than 70 percent of the store’s customer base.