Uproar’ to Launch at jcpenney for Back-to-School

PLANO, Texas (April 20, 2010) –– Leveraging its leadership in creating powerful private brands, J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP) today announced the launch of Uproar™, a stylish, affordable tween brand that interprets today’s latest fashion trends while remaining age-appropriate and Mom-approved. The new private brand will be available in jcpenney stores and jcp.com starting July 20, arriving in time for the Back-to-School shopping season.

In 2009, jcpenney talked to tweens and moms about their shopping habits and style tastes. While tweens initiate shopping trips and select apparel items themselves, moms continue to join them on shopping trips and have a final say in the purchase. jcpenney confirmed through its research that tweens desired the latest fashion trends – with color, embellishments and comfort highlighted as important factors – while moms noted that apparel should not feature edgy slogans and should offer layering components to make the items age-appropriate and adhere to school dress code requirements.

“Using key learnings from our consumer research, we worked to create an authentic brand that would feature the latest fashion trends that tweens desire, but interpreted in a kid-friendly, mom-approved way -- all at the quality and price customers have come to expect from jcpenney,” said Clark McNaught, senior vice president and general merchandise manager of jcpenney’s children’s division. “The launch of this exciting brand underscores our commitment to delivering fashion at an affordable price that responds to the needs of our customers. Uproar further strengthens our children’s apparel business and provides yet another compelling reason for customers to shop with us this Back-to-School season.”

Created for girls and boys ages 9-13, Uproar will offer cool, edgy and functional styles and feature premium denim and the latest fabrics and finishes. The collection will include trendy items such as graphic and studded tees, tunics, military-style sweaters and motorcross jackets as well as leggings, jeggings and skinny and bootcut jeans. Jeans in the collection will include fashionable “deconstructed,” “rip and repair” and “chunky stitch” styles in various washes, incorporating foil, zipper or leather patch features. Details have been incorporated into the collection to ensure it remains age-appropriate with items offering built-in layering, graphics worded and placed appropriately on the apparel items, jeans styled with a worn-in look featuring repaired holes, and more. Items will range in price from $17.99 for a tee to $36.99 for a jacket or jeans.

Uproar builds on jcpenney’s retail leadership in creating powerful private brands. The Company’s industry-leading product development and merchandise flow initiatives — including trend, research, design, multi-country sourcing, logistics, technology, quality control/testing facilities and inventory management — serve as a unique competitive advantage, allowing jcpenney to create brands that bring newness and innovation to its merchandise assortment. Today, many of the Company’s private brands – including successful children’s brands Okie Dokie® and The Original Arizona Jean Co.® – have achieved consumer awareness on par with major national brands. With the launch of Uproar, jcpenney continues to respond to customers needs, incorporating its private brand expertise into the creation of a fashion-forward apparel collection designed specifically for its tween customer.

For further information contact:

jcpenney Corporate Communications (business and trade media relations):
Kate Coultas; 972-431-3400; jcpcorpcomm@jcpenney.com

jcpenney Brand Publicity (lifestyle media relations):
Merianne Roth; 972-431-2317; mroth4@jcpenney.com

About jcpenney
jcpenney is one of America's leading retailers, operating 1,110 department stores throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, as well as one of the largest apparel and home furnishing sites on the Internet, jcp.com, and the nation's largest general merchandise catalog business. Through these integrated channels, jcpenney offers a wide array of national, private and exclusive brands which reflect the Company's commitment to providing customers with style and quality at a smart price. Traded as "JCP" on the New York Stock Exchange, the Company posted revenue of $17.6 billion in 2009 and is executing its strategic plan to be the growth leader in the retail industry. Key to this strategy is jcpenney's "Every Day Matters" brand positioning, intended to generate deeper, more emotionally driven relationships with customers by fully engaging the Company's approximately 150,000 associates to offer encouragement, provide ideas and inspire customers every time they shop with jcpenney. For more information visit www.jcpenney.net

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