“J.C. Penney Co. is tapping Ron Johnson, head of Apple Inc.’s iconic retail stores, as its new president and eventual chief executive, people familiar with the situation said,” Elizabeth Holmes and Joann S. Lublin report for The Wall Street Journal.
“The company is expected to announce Mr. Johnson’s appointment later today,” Holmes and Lublin report. “Mr. Johnson will become CEO in the next few months, succeeding long-time leader Myron ‘Mike’ Ullman. He joined Apple from Target Corp., where he was vice president of merchandising for stores.”
Holmes and Lublin report, “Mr. Johnson joined Apple in 2000 and has since opened more than 300 stores for the company.
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Johnson is a major league all-star. Apple will be sorry to see him go and, all of a sudden, J.C. Penney has a bright future. Good luck and job exceedingly well done, Mr. Johnson!
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Fred Mertz” and “Mike in Helsinki” for the heads up.]
JCP will still be crap geared toward the greatest common denominator.
Wow, good score JCP! It is too bad to see him go.
Seconded.
They will rename it JC Johnson. But he is off his nut to go to a craphouse like that. What an abomination (obamanation)
The deck gets shuffled again. So who is the likely successor?
Wha’ts really impressive is that Johnson is putting $50M of the money he has earned while at Apple, into JCP stock, not exercisable for 6 years, at a strike price set in the last couple days, around $29.92. Unlike most CEOs who get options for nothing, Ron is putting his money into JCP for a minimum of 6 years. Good for you, Ron!
Always sad to see quality people leave. But Johnson did a great job for Apple and set them on the right course on retail. After 10 years it is time to give someone else a shot.
Also, unlike the MS execs leaving for “family reasons,” i.e., leaving a sinking ship, Johnson is exiting to be a CEO. You can’t fault him for that.
Good luck Ron, you are going to need it at Penney’s because it is going take more than lipstick to make that pig look attractive.
Ron Johnson’s a magic man. He made discount chic cool with Target. It’s the only discount chain I frequent. The Apple retail stores have no equal in any industry. Everybody watch. He’ll make JC Penney cool no matter how implausible that seems at this moment.
Wow! I am shocked. I have thought for a while now that JC Penny was a slow sinking ship.
You thought wrong. JCP is probably the most successful of the old-old school department stores (Think of those whose roots go back to catalog retail in the 1800s.)
At last he didn’t move to the enemy. JCP needs a remake and I doubt they could have done better.
Wonder if he plans to offer Apple boutiques inside to draw traffic.
Currently, Ron Johnson is a top 10 trending topic on Twitter. I think that’s amazing.
he won’t be able to help them. They have no idea who their customer is and he won’t be able to help them find it
Can’t wait to go to the Genius Bar at JC Penny!
Can you help me figure out how to unstrap a bra with one hand?
Here’s hoping that his successor can continue the achievements of Mr. Johnson.
Everyone is right that JCPenney is going to be a hard thing to fix. Actually, that’s true for traditional department stores in general. But if anyone can do it, it’s this guy.
——RM
Wow. What a huge loss for Apple, I’m guessing McDougal steps up?
Good luck at JCPenny Ron, we’ll miss you. But, we’re excited to see what you can do in your new challenge.
Holy shit, this is huge! Johnson was the brain.
I cannot imagine leaving Apple, even if it means more visibility as a head honcho. Apple is just so much more interesting.
While reading the Press release statement from Apple on his leaving I detected a little bit of sarcasm on their part.
“Ron, do you want to sell underwear or change the world?”
“I want to sell underwear.”
LOL!
Ron Johnson did a great job at apple
that too many people think that ex Apple staff can ALWAYS work miracles.
But that might not be true. The reason people can shine might be because Apple promotes excellence, supports innovation and rewards risk takers (opening apple stores was a big risk) who succeed (look at the millions Johnson is taking with him). Other companies might have ingrained cultures that defeat excellence and are resistive to change. They might have a innovation fearful board and managers more interested in bonuses and security than risky change.
Remember Johnny Ive had his designs trashed by clueless clients back in England and then languised in Apple before Jobs return and recognition of his talents.
With Ron Johnson in charge, J. C. Penney could overtake Walmart inside of a decade. The man knows things about how to sell things in stores that most people have no idea there is to know.
-jcr
An Apple’s board seat is clearly reserved for him if needed.
This may be one of succession plan laid out for Ron. He can enjoy new challenges and at the same time can make contribution to Apple’s retail strategy.
Jobs: Do you want to make a dent in the Universe or do you want to sell Dockers?
Johnson: Dockers!
Universe: WTH?
What this says to me — and it’s interesting that no one in the press or on this site has zeroed in on it yet (it took me a day or so) — is that this bodes well for the future of Steve Jobs, his health and his time at Apple. If he were sick to the point of not returning full-time, senior management would, I think, be hanging on collectively to see who would win in the inevitable shake-up.
While Johnson leaving makes me sad, it’s obvious that he doesn’t see Apple’s top job in his future. That’s a good thing for everyone, whether it means Steve’s health stabilizing or a solid succession plan.