JCPenney announced the appointment of Marc Rosen as chief executive officer, effective November 1, 2021.
Stanley Shashoua, Simon’s chief investment officer, has been appointed as executive chairman of the Board of Directors after serving as interim CEO of JCPenney since January.
“Marc joins JCPenney following a year of focused work to stabilize the business, improve financials, and position the retailer for long-term success,” said Shashoua. “Working with the phenomenal and dedicated JCPenney team as CEO has been immensely rewarding, and I look forward to my next step as executive chairman. Marc’s significant e-commerce and retail experience with companies like Levi’s and Walmart makes him the perfect fit to lead the next chapter of the company’s transformation as we work to better serve our customers.”
Rosen brings more than 25 years of retail and e-commerce experience to the role, most recently serving as executive vice president and president of Levi Strauss Americas at Levi Strauss & Co., leading commercial operations for Levi’s, Dockers, Signature by Levi Strauss & Co., and Denizen brands across all channels. As the leader of the company’s Digital Enterprise Office, he drove digital strategy.
During his tenure at Levi Strauss & Co., Rosen held executive-level roles overseeing its direct-to-consumer business. In this position, he was responsible for leading the company’s global e-commerce and retail businesses, including 3,000 stores. Prior to Levi Strauss & Co., Rosen spent 14 years at Walmart Inc. in senior leadership roles, ultimately serving as senior vice president of global e-commerce.
Rosen began his career at Ernst & Young, providing strategic retail advisory services. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Inspire Brands, a multi-brand restaurant company whose portfolio includes more than 32,000 chain restaurants worldwide.
“I am humbled by the opportunity to lead this storied brand and build on the progress the JCPenney team has made under their new ownership group,” said Rosen. “I have spent my career focused on iconic American retailers and it has given me a unique perspective on the value of heritage brands. Joining at this milestone moment in the company’s history, I am eager to propel the business into its next era and connect with our customers in new ways.”
JCPenney’s last CEO, Jill Soltau, left in December as the retailer emerged from bankruptcy proceedings.
JCPenney said it “has strengthened its omnichannel experience by meeting customers where they are with the brands they love and all the ways they want to shop. In the past year alone, JCPenney has strategically introduced and relaunched 16 private and exclusive national brands, six of which are entirely new private brands, across all divisions. Notable portfolio additions include Ryegrass, Linden Street, Thereabouts, Stylus, and Juicy by Juicy Couture. JCPenney has also improved its digital and fulfillment capabilities and introduced JCPenney Beauty, the company’s new beauty experience. These cumulative efforts have helped the retailer gain market share, resulting in current liquidity of $1.5 billion. JCPenney looks toward its 120th year of business in 2022 with the operation of 670 stores nationwide and plans to continue building on the momentum established this year.”
Photo courtesy JCPenney/Marc Rosen
