On January 1, Stanley Shashoua, Simon Property Group’s chief investment Officer, will become JCPenney’s interim CEO, the company’s fourth in six years.
Although Soltau, the former CEO of Joann and veteran retail leader, said her improvement plan had started to work, the company was simply out of time. Covid-19 threw the entire retail business into distress, and it decimated struggling retailers like JCPenney.
But its prospects remain grim. The company has been closing stores left and right and hasn’t recorded an annual profit since 2010.
JCPenney’s new owners said they would search for a new CEO who is “focused on modern retail, the consumer experience, and the goal of creating a sustainable and enduring JCPenney.” Apparently, they didn’t believe that was Jill Soltau.