JC Penney To Close In Rochester At Lilac Mall

JC Penney has been in financial trouble long before this pandemic hit and now it's the final blow to the brick and mortar store that I bought my first bathing suit at.

According to a story from WMUR, there are four locations in New Hampshire that are closing, Keene, North Conway, West Lebanon and here on the Seacoast in Rochester.  The NH stores in Newington, Manchester, Concord, Salem and Nashua are not on the list to close.

Here's a statement from jcpnewsroom.com:  

Following a comprehensive review of our retail footprint, JCPenney made the difficult decision to close 154 stores. We will continue to operate the majority of our stores and our flagship store, jcp.com, to ensure our valued customers continue to have access to the products and brands they need and want.

Man, I remember the time that I bought my first bathing suit at JC Penney.  What a horrifying experience it was.  The salesclerk that was trying to help me was very nice and I'm sure she didn't mean to humiliate me when she said, "OH YOU NEED A BIGGER SIZE"  loudly and proudly in the middle of the dressing room in front of all the other girls who were half my size.  I'm sure she didn't notice that my face turned about 16 shades of red and I just wanted to absolutely DIE when she came back in to the room with a one piece bathing suit that looked like my beloved Aunt Hazel would have worn.  I forgive her for saying, "OH THAT ONE REALLY SUITS YOU."

Ug.  Such sad times.