JCPenney
has turned to Kraft's Debra Berman, an
executive with deep brand and agency experience, to direct the struggling
department store giant's comeback.
At
Penney, Berman is svp of marketing. Her appointment comes on the heels of
the Plano, Texas-based chain's return to its longtime discount-driven strategy—ditched 18 months ago
only to yield extremely poor results.
This
is just the latest development in a year of change for Penney's, following the April firing of CEO Ron Johnson and the rehire
of longtime chief exec Mike Ullman. Berman worked for agencies including DDB
and Saatchi & Saatchi before joining Kraft in 2009.
