Born on September 16, 1875 on a small farm in Caldwell County, near Hamilton, Missouri, James Cash Penney Jr. was the seventh of twelve children born to James Cash Penney and Mary Frances Paxton. His father was a Baptist minister and a farmer whose yields were modest. In fact, the family was so poor that only half of Penney’s siblings would survive into their adulthood. Impoverished as they were, the Penney family was rich in religious values. James and Mary raised all of their children to believe in God, self-reliance, and the Golden Rule.

Penney bucked the family trend and achieved success as an entrepreneur opening the J.C. Penney Company.

In 1920, the J.C. Penney Company had over 197 stores along the West coast. Just nine years later, that number had grown to more than 1,400 stores across the country; new stores had been opening at a rapid rate of almost one every three days. Today, the company has grown to be one of the nation’s largest retailers. By the time Penney died at the age of 95, sales for the company he had helped grow finally reached the $5 billion mark.

What were his rules for success?:

When this business was founded, it sought to win public confidence through service, for it was my conviction then, as it is now, that nothing else than right service to the public results in mutual understanding and satisfaction between customer and merchant. It was for this reason that our business was founded upon the eternal principle of the Golden Rule.

The friendly smile, the word of greeting, are certainly something fleeting and seemingly insubstantial. You can’t take them with you. But they work for good beyond your power to measure their influence. It is the service we are not obliged to give that people value most.

The store that sells its wares for less but pays little attention to the service it renders does not meet with the success of the store with courteous employees. The public is not greatly interested in saving a little money on a purchase at the expense of service. Courteous treatment will make a customer a walking advertisement.

Are you going above the call of duty to help your customers? As a challenge for the next month, every time you speak with a customer try to go the extra mile to make sure they have an outstanding (not just a good or even great) experience with you. If you don’t see an increase in your customer base from referrals you’re doing something wrong!

Evan Carmichael

Evan Carmichael
YoungEntrepreneur.com Blog Manager

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