J.C. Penney

James Cash Penney started a chain of department stores in 1902 in Kemmerer, Wyoming. It grew to some 1095 stores but is now struggling. A new approach may help.

In 1902, J.C. Penney opened his first store in Kemmerer, Wyoming. 115 years later, the chain is struggling with the new model of business and online shopping.

Kemmerer has several interesting claims to fame. The small southwestern Wyoming town is the site of the first J.C. Penney store and the home of former Los Angeles Lakers owner Dr. Jerry Buss. During the prohibiton era, it was also the bootlegging capital of Wyoming...