JCPenney Co.

Plano, Texas  -- J.C. Penney is reflecting in a post-holiday glow and feeling bullish about its business going forward after reporting a 3.7% increase in same-store sales during the holidays (the nine week period from November through December). The retailer also said that it expects its fourth-quarter comparable sales will be at the top end of its forecast range of a 2% to 4% gain.

A 3.7% same store sales increase during the holidays has JCPenney feeling good about the continued growth of its business.

The retailer said same store sales during the nine week period from November through December increase 3.7%. That figure was on top of a 3.1% gain during the same period the prior year and was toward the high end of the company’s guidance range which envisioned comp growth of two percent to four percent.

A number of retailers saw changes at the top this past year. Here are the ones I found the most interesting:

Abercrombie & Fitch: The abrupt departure of longtime chief Michael Jeffries presents the former teen powerhouse with an opportunity to bring in a badly needed breath of fresh air.

In his day, no one could touch Jeffries, whose transformation of Abercrombie into a cool, exclusive club is a textbook example of brilliant, holistic retail branding. But Jeffries failed to keep up with the changing times. He seemed blind to the recession.

Home Depot EVP Marvin Ellison will become president of J.C. Penney on November 1 and succeed Mike Ullman as CEO of the department store retailer next August.

With 2014 almost over, another holiday shopping season is drawing to a close. The looming question on everyone’s mind, of course, is whether holiday sales managed to live up to the (mostly) positive holiday forecasts from analysts and retail organizations.   

Janesville, Wisconsin - CBL & Associates Properties announced that DICK'S Sporting Goods and ULTA Beauty are coming to Janesville Mall in Janesville, Wisconsin. The two new stores will be situated in the former JC Penney location. Construction is expected to begin in January with the grand opening for both stores scheduled for fall 2015.  

Plano, Texas –  Hoping to boost its holiday mobile traffic, J.C. Penney has enhanced its digital presence, including an all-new JCPenney iPhone app. Along with improved navigation, faster browsing and easier access to coupons, one notable feature of the JCPenney app is the ability for customers to scan the barcode of an item to find its availability on jcpenney.com   

It’s been another big year in terms of new store openings in New York City. Here are my top 10 faves: