System Mechanic - Clean, repair, protect, and speed up your PC!James Cash Penney
1875 - 1971
James Cash Penney (J.C. Penney), founder of the J.C. Penney department store chain, died February 12, 1971. He was 95.
Penney was born September 16, 1875 in Hamilton, Missouri. Interested in business at an early age, Penney, in 1900, was sent by the firm he was employed with to run its mercantile establishment in Evanston, Wyoming.
In 1902, Penney was offered the chance to open his own store in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Its success led to two more store openings. And while Penney wasn't the first to recognize the importance of chain store management and mass merchandising, he took it to a different level by getting employees more involved.
Penney offered his managers a financial incentive to do well. He insisted on quality merchandise at a cash and carry price. Penney also believed in the golden rule and its application to business practices.
In 1912, Penney was operating 34 Golden Rule stores. Five years later, there were 197 stores, and in 1919 the chain changed its name to J.C. Penney. In 1928, the company had grown to over 1,000 stores and $176.7 million in annual sales.
As the business prospered, Penney began investing huge sums of money into various projects, including financing the publication of Christian Herald and donating to a home for retired ministers. As result of his philanthropic activities, Penney's personal fortune was almost wiped out. He was confined to a sanitarium for a brief time, but returned to lead his company again, retiring in 1958 with his fortune and reputation intact.
During his retirement, Penney continued to work on his company's board of directors, and keeping a hand in religious work.
Before his death, he saw Penney's rise to be the second largest dry goods store in the country, second only to Sears Roebuck and Company.
