????曼哈頓57號(hào)碼頭很久都沒有這么熱鬧過了。這里曾經(jīng)是停泊遠(yuǎn)洋油輪的地方，眼下，破舊的建筑里到處都是帶著頭戴式耳機(jī)的工人在搬運(yùn)梯子和舞臺(tái)燈。斑駁的墻面被亮白色的布遮擋起來。方形霓虹燈牌上標(biāo)著英文小寫字母“jcp”標(biāo)志，讓人感覺這里更像是一場后現(xiàn)代派的藝術(shù)展。映射在墻上的投影顯示出一團(tuán)團(tuán)飄動(dòng)于藍(lán)天之上的白色云朵，雖已入夜，卻感覺如同白晝一般。

????散發(fā)光芒的不只是墻上的投影，也可能是J.C. Penney服飾百貨公司新任CEO羅恩?約翰遜那百折不撓的樂觀主義精神。聽聽他自己怎么說吧，他說J.C.Penny的黎明再次降臨。羅恩?約翰遜在視察準(zhǔn)備工作時(shí)高興地嚷道：“我太喜歡這些云朵了！”一天半之后，他將在這里招待1,200名記者、分析師、商家和零售行業(yè)名流，比如卡爾文?克萊恩和瑪莎?斯圖爾特。他將在此公布自己對(duì)這家百年老店的激進(jìn)改革方案。目前該公司年收入為173億美元。

????約翰遜在檢查時(shí)說：“效果一定非常不錯(cuò)！”他語氣輕快，同時(shí)透著一絲冷靜。他在詳細(xì)查看細(xì)節(jié)工作時(shí)簡直是老東家史蒂夫?喬布斯的翻版，只是比后者更爽朗、更善解人意。他仔細(xì)衡量云朵飄移的速度，重新整理人形模特身上的衣服，詢問餐飲準(zhǔn)備情況，還否決了商家問答環(huán)節(jié)（他說：“我們今天是要展示公司的愿景”）。他甚至還對(duì)現(xiàn)場的移動(dòng)廁所贊嘆了一番。這是他的亮相派對(duì)，他希望一切盡善盡美。

????多年以來，約翰遜一直隱身在幕后，但不要忘記，有兩個(gè)非常重要的零售概念是他建立起來的。在塔吉特百貨公司時(shí)，他與邁克爾?格雷夫斯合作，努力讓公司把合理價(jià)格和出色設(shè)計(jì)結(jié)合起來。在蘋果公司時(shí)，他又與喬布斯一道開創(chuàng)了全球利潤最豐厚的零售店。

????現(xiàn)年53歲的約翰遜正迎來個(gè)人最艱巨的挑戰(zhàn)。在目前這個(gè)中產(chǎn)階級(jí)自身都岌岌可危的時(shí)期，面向中產(chǎn)顧客的J.C.Penney品牌正在走下坡路。而一天半之后，在57號(hào)碼頭那些云朵前，約翰遜將公開發(fā)表聲明：努力扭轉(zhuǎn)J.C. Penney公司的困境，并在2015年底前將J.C.Penney打造為“全美最受歡迎的商店”。請(qǐng)注意，不是“全美最受歡迎的百貨商店”，而是“所有商店類型中最受歡迎的總冠軍”。

????為了吸引客戶，約翰遜公布了一項(xiàng)極度簡化的定價(jià)策略，并精簡品牌，改變店鋪布局，在“城市廣場”周邊布設(shè)小型精品服裝店。他的目標(biāo)是重新恢復(fù)人們對(duì)這家百貨公司的認(rèn)同感。它不僅是個(gè)購物場所，還充滿了發(fā)現(xiàn)新事物的樂趣。

????新的定價(jià)策略雄心勃勃，同時(shí)也充滿風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。消費(fèi)者已經(jīng)習(xí)慣于在Penney和其他百貨公司大舉促銷時(shí)前往購物。在線購物時(shí)代已經(jīng)來臨，沒多少人愿意去逛J.C.Penney這種品牌優(yōu)勢已經(jīng)衰減的百貨商店。約翰遜對(duì)此心知肚明，但他似乎對(duì)這項(xiàng)挑戰(zhàn)很有興趣。在他誠摯認(rèn)真的學(xué)院風(fēng)格外表之后，跳動(dòng)著一顆渴望變革的心?，F(xiàn)在的消費(fèi)者可能一次只買一條4美元的毛巾，他熱切希望改變消費(fèi)者的購物體驗(yàn)。

????約翰遜說：“人們希望能夠歸屬于某種更深層次的東西?！睆耐陼r(shí)開始，他就擁有一種近乎神奇的能力，善于領(lǐng)導(dǎo)并讓他人感覺到歸屬感，仿佛自己正投身于一項(xiàng)偉大的事業(yè)。他朝氣蓬勃，并與人為善。他還是一位主日學(xué)校教師和美國少年棒球聯(lián)合會(huì)（Little League）教練。他為人夫，也為人父。他的家庭教育背景完全是諾曼?洛克威爾（美國20世紀(jì)早期的重要畫家——譯注）式的：他成長于明尼蘇達(dá)州明尼阿波利斯的富人郊區(qū)伊代納。他父親曾經(jīng)擔(dān)任通用磨坊公司（General Mills）的高管，母親曾是一名護(hù)士，后來做了家庭主婦。約翰遜是一個(gè)好學(xué)生，也是一名非常出色的運(yùn)動(dòng)員，他曾擔(dān)任棒球隊(duì)和足球隊(duì)隊(duì)長。他的兒時(shí)伙伴查克?慕提表示：“比起他的才華，人們更欣賞他堅(jiān)持不懈的精神。他具有百折不撓的勇氣?！?/p>

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????譯者：李玫曉/汪皓

????It's been a long time since Manhattan's Pier 57 has seen this much action. Once home to ocean liners, the decaying structure is filled with headset-wearing workers toting ladders and stage lights. The mottled walls have been hidden by bright white fabric. Neon squares with a lowercase "jcp" bring to mind a postmodern art show. It's night but it feels like day has broken as puffy white clouds move on a blue sky projected against the walls.

????Or perhaps it's just the relentless optimism of Ron Johnson, J.C. Penney's new CEO. To hear him tell it, it's morning again at the company. "Love the clouds!" exults Johnson, who is inspecting the preparations. In just 36 hours he will host 1,200 reporters, analysts, vendors, and retail celebrities such as Calvin Klein and Martha Stewart as he unveils his radical reinvention of the century-old department store company, which has $17.3 billion in annual revenue.

????"Wow! This is going to be great," Johnson says, sounding simultaneously giddy and calm. He's like a chipper, empathetic version of his old boss Steve Jobs, as he checks detail after detail. He ponders the speed of the clouds, re-pins the clothes on a mannequin, inquires about the food, vetoes a Q&A for the vendors ("We're here to present a vision"), and even admires the porta-potties. This is his coming-out party, and he wants it to be perfect.

????Johnson has spent years in the shadows, hatching two of the most significant retail concepts in a generation. At Target (TGT) he made the deal with Michael Graves that helped the company meld good prices with great design. At Apple (AAPL) he worked with Jobs to create the most profitable retail store in the world.

????Now Johnson, 53, is embarking on his toughest challenge. In front of those clouds at Pier 57 a day and a half later, he proclaimed that he would turn J.C. Penney (JCP) -- a dowdy brand aimed at the middle class at a time when the middle class itself is in peril -- into "America's favorite store" by the end of 2015. Not America's favorite department store, mind you; America's favorite store of any type.

????To attract customers, Johnson unveiled a radically simplified pricing strategy, a slimmed-down but improved selection of brands, and a change in the store's layout, which will consist exclusively of mini-boutiques arrayed around a "town square." His goal is to reclaim the department store's long-lost identity as a place shoppers visit not only for the goods but also for the enchantment of discovering something new.

????The new pricing strategy is ambitious -- and risky. Customers have been trained by Penney's and others to hold out for massive discounts. In the era of online shopping, few have the inclination to visit a store with a faded brand like J.C. Penney's. Johnson knows all of that and seems to relish the challenge. Behind his preppy, earnest exterior beats the heart of someone who is out to change the experience of today's shopper -- one $4 towel at a time.

????People want to belong to something deeper," says Johnson. Since childhood he has had a near-messianic ability to lead people and make them feel as if they belong, as if they're part of a great cause. He's almost cartoonishly wholesome and nice, a Sunday-school teacher, Little League coach, husband, and dad whose upbringing was pure Norman Rockwell: He grew up in Edina, Minn., a well-heeled suburb of Minneapolis, the son of a General Mills (GIS) executive and a nurse turned homemaker. Johnson was a good student and a great athlete, captaining the baseball and soccer teams. Says childhood friend Chuck Mooty: "What people loved more about him than his talent was his persistence. He was just relentless."