Shares of JC Penney ramping up fast... due to good inventory mgmt?

After reading a recent Q&A, I was left wondering and pondering about the future for retailer J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP). The company has recently re-invented its marketing and is standing tall among many retailers in the field like Marshall Fields, Kohl's Corporation (NYSE:KSS), and Sears Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD) -- although discount competitors Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) and Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) have eaten a little of JC Penney's lunch.

The "A" part of the session linked here talked about JC Penney's modern inventory management system. Many companies can say that, but the proof is in the pudding -- do you ever have a hard time finding that certain regular-price or sale-price item on a trip to JC Penneys?

If not, the retailer's inventory management system must be working. If you've consistently had issues finding products in stock, the system must not be working, regardless of internal metrics. Because the end measure is customer access to merchandise (merchandise uptime). Do you agree? And, how is JC Penney doing here?