J.C. Penney Files Temporary Restraining Order Against Sephora

Struggling retailer JC Penney, which is in the process of reopening locations following the lock downs during the coronavirus pandemic, has filed a temporary restraining order against Sephora. The company is going to court in an attempt to stop Sephora from pulling out of its stores.

“JCPenney filed a temporary restraining order so Sephora could not prevent JCPenney from reopening Sephora inside JCPenney (SiJCP) locations,” Penney spokesperson Brooke Buchanan said on Monday. “We remain committed to working together to drive sustainable, profitable growth, as SiJCP continues to be a beauty destination that serves millions of customers each year.”

According to a filing in April, Sephora and Penney have had a joint enterprise operating agreement since Feb. 1st, 2009. The filing also revealed that Sephora has “threatened imminent termination” of the contract, which would cause Penney to suffer “irreparable injury,” including a loss of business opportunities.

“We have been in active discussions with JCPenney regarding our agreement for some time,” Sephora said in a statement. “Although this is a sudden and unfortunate development, we are hopeful of continuing discussions and reaching an amicable agreement for both Sephora and JCPenney.”

Most of J.C. Penney’s stores have been closed since March 18 because of the coronavirus and the company has furloughed most of its hourly workers starting April 2nd.

Only select stores are currently open, according to the company.

Disclaimer: We have no position in J C Penney Company Inc. (NYSE: JCP) and have not been compensated for this article.