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J.C. Penney Releases Apology Ad Begging Shoppers To Come Back

“It’s no secret,” begins a new J.C. Penney television ad, to a soft piano soundtrack and nostalgic images of old storefronts. “Recently, J.C. Penney changed.”

That’s something of an understatement. In April, the clothing retailer booted CEO Ron Johnson, wooed from Apple with much fanfare, after he oversaw a $4 billion loss in revenue in his brief tenure.

As former CEO Mike Ullman goes about stemming the bleeding, J.C. Penney is going on the offensive, apologizing to shoppers alienated by Johnson’s controversial store revamps.

In the ad, the company shies away from directly addressing Johnson’s upgrades, including Denim Bars to help J.C. Penney shoppers find the perfect jeans, not unlike Apple’s Genius Bars.

Other touches inspired by Johnson’s Apple gig include roving employees with iPod Touch devices, offering to ring up purchases and search for other sizes or styles on J.C. Penney’s website at a customer’s request.

These and other missteps (including, presumably, the chain’s much-derided moratorium on discounts and sales) are glossed over as “changes” in the ad:

“Some changes you liked and some you didn’t, but what matters from mistakes is what we learn. We learned a very simple thing, to listen to you. To hear what you need, to make your life more beautiful. Come back to JCPenney, we heard you. Now, we’d love to see you.”

A spokesperson for the retailer told Forbes that this campaign will run nationally for “just a couple of days this week” as a precursor to a planned Mother’s Day initiative.

“In addition to broadcast, they can be viewed online through our social media channels to encourage more customer dialogue,” said the rep.

“We want to give customers our assurance that what they loved about JCPenney’s ­ trusted brands, great style and affordable prices ­ will be inherent to every shopping experience,” she said.

So far, social media response to the feel-good campaign seems positive. “As an active investor in this company, I found hope in this simple video,” wrote one YouTube commenter.

Others chimed in using the #JCPlistens hashtag encouraged by the company on Twitter. “House brand pricing is fantastic and things are on more on trend,” wrote one user in a tweet.

Said another: “I appreciate y’all’s approach to changing again. I will definitely be coming in.” He’s already been rewarded with a tweeted reply from @JCPenney offering a $50 gift card.

As the company looks to repair its reputation with customers, it seems to be making strides to fix its balance sheet, recently securing financing from Goldman Sachs and a significant investment from billionaire George Soros.

It remains to be seen whether Main Street will join Wall Street in cheering on J.C. Penney’s turnaround, but the retailer is confident this ad is the place to start.

“This campaign sends a clear message that we listened,” said a rep. “We’re doing everything we can to bring customers back.”