JCPenney Bets on Real Shoppers to Cure Holiday Deal Fatigue

Only 32% of shoppers completely or mostly trust retailers to offer a fair or competitive price, according to Akeneo data cited in JCPenney's press materials — and that distrust is exactly what the department store's new holiday campaign aims to exploit.

JCPenney claims 92% of consumers say they are confident they receive good deals at its stores, per information shared by the brand. The figure is self-reported and unverified, but it frames the retailer's bet: position itself as the honest discounter in a season drowning in promotions.

The campaign launches Monday across TV, online video, audio and paid social, spotlighting real deal-scoring JCPenney shoppers. A 15-second spot, "Party Fits," is set in Crown Point, Indiana, and stars a local barber named Raemonie, who showcases three holiday looks purchased for a total of $168. "Meet Raemonie — she was worried about having enough outfits for all of her holiday parties. Now, thanks to JCPenney, she's worried about having enough holiday parties for all her outfits," the voice-over says.

Agency Mischief created the work, which builds on the "Yes, JCPenney" brand platform launched in 2025 and follows a back-to-school effort that cast real teachers. "While everyone else is doing kind of their fantastical TV campaigns for holiday, ours is truly grounded in real people, real life, and showing how those real people can — and deserve to — enjoy having better deals from JCPenney," said Marisa Thalberg, executive vice president and chief customer and marketing officer at parent Catalyst Brands.

What does the campaign actually offer?

• A weekly deals cheat sheet, released every Monday through the season, highlighting top deals to shop each week.
• "Really Big Deals" promotions running every Thursday through Dec. 13.
• 97% of in-store items on sale from Nov. 5–11.
• Black Friday deals from Nov. 20–29, plus surprise in-store giveaways on Nov. 27.
• Harry Potter pop-up events with Warner Bros. Global Consumer Products, a version of the Hogwarts Express train at select stores, and a limited-time capsule of clothing and home items.

The Harry Potter tie-in is a foot-traffic play — the one element that departs from the campaign's everyday-realism script.

Why the skepticism angle matters

Consumer deal fatigue is documented beyond JCPenney's own materials. Shoppers expect to spend an average of $1,654 this season, up 4% year over year, as they anticipate higher prices, according to Deloitte's annual holiday survey. Deloitte also found 38% of shoppers plan to adopt five or more money-saving strategies — and that this group is still expected to spend 12% more than others on average.

The stakes for JCPenney are unusually high. The company's total net sales fell over 8% year over year to $1.3 billion in the second quarter, a weaker performance than department store peers including Kohl's and Macy's.

Deals have long anchored JCPenney's marketing. Earlier this year the retailer remade Paris Fashion Week with a runway show that swapped haute couture for JCPenney looks with prices displayed on stage. In August, it parodied off-price retailers to argue its low prices do not mean low quality. The holiday push continues that thesis: shoppers should not have to choose between fashion and affordability, Thalberg said.

"We understand our customer," Thalberg said. "Our customer is everyone, real people, real working middle class American families who are trying to make ends meet, and we are very cognizant and empathetic of the economic pressures that Americans are facing."

What the campaign materials do not say is how JCPenney will measure whether its trust messaging moves sales — the quarter's results will be the test.