Grand Opening for 20 J.C. Penney Stores

Plano, Texas, J. C. Penney will open 20 new stores on Friday as a part of its new accelerated growth strategy initiative. The simultaneous store openings will take place in 13 states.

J.C. Penney previously announced that it expects to open at least 50 stores per year from 2007 through 2009. About 80 to 90% of the new stores, including 17 of the 20 opening Friday, will adopt the off-mall format, although the company continues to pursue opportunities to acquire mall stores. The company currently has 25 stores open in the off-mall design.

The off-mall format, covering approximately 100,000 sq. ft. on a single level, features wider aisles, new lighting designs and concentrated customer-service centers.