The whole “fair and square” campaign that JC Penney is doing is really appealing and simple, if you are only judging by the ads and the new February catalog, both of which are really well designed and fun to watch/look at If you’re judging by walking into a JC Penney now, though, you’ll be walking into the same old “upscale Marshalls” that you’d expect from them before their new campaign. It’s a mess and the fact that nothing is signed except for the 1 or 2 things that have a pink little square above them kind of defeats the purpose of the campaign. I was, honestly, expecting an experience similar to that of Target, except more oriented toward low-budget clothing shoppers rather than the “I’m fat and have five kids but shopping here makes me feel cool” clientele. To validate my point I also went to a relatively new JC Penney store that opened a few years ago nearby. It was pretty much untouched, save for, again, a few pink signs with prices on them. Why would you advertise 2/1/12 as your “Enough. Is. Enough.” day to start yourselves over, yet your stores are still stuck with the same useless vibe that they’ve always had. I mean, I know you’ll always have the same junk, but showcasing the things that I usually overlook would make me pay more attention. It makes no sense to tease me with the shit in the catalog and the website, and then make it a game of hide-and-seek when I actually get my ass out of bed and go to scour your sloppy shelves for the one shirt that I want that you don’t even have in my size. So when you do a facelift on everything but the most important aspect of your company, the retail stores, and pass that off as your “110-year anniversary refresh,” I’m calling bullshit.