<SEC-DOCUMENT>0001193125-12-408860.txt : 20121220
<SEC-HEADER>0001193125-12-408860.hdr.sgml : 20121220
<ACCEPTANCE-DATETIME>20120928153036
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ACCESSION NUMBER:		0001193125-12-408860
CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE:	CORRESP
PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT:		1
FILED AS OF DATE:		20120928

FILER:

	COMPANY DATA:	
		COMPANY CONFORMED NAME:			TJX COMPANIES INC /DE/
		CENTRAL INDEX KEY:			0000109198
		STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION:	RETAIL-FAMILY CLOTHING STORES [5651]
		IRS NUMBER:				042207613
		STATE OF INCORPORATION:			DE
		FISCAL YEAR END:			0131

	FILING VALUES:
		FORM TYPE:		CORRESP

	BUSINESS ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		770 COCHITUATE RD
		CITY:			FRAMINGHAM
		STATE:			MA
		ZIP:			01701
		BUSINESS PHONE:		508-390-2662

	MAIL ADDRESS:	
		STREET 1:		770 COCHITUATE ROAD
		CITY:			FRAMINGHAM
		STATE:			MA
		ZIP:			01701

	FORMER COMPANY:	
		FORMER CONFORMED NAME:	ZAYRE CORP
		DATE OF NAME CHANGE:	19890625
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<TYPE>CORRESP
<SEQUENCE>1
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<TITLE>SEC Letter</TITLE>
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 <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px" ALIGN="center"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">[The TJX Companies, Inc. Letterhead] </FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">September&nbsp;28, 2012 </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Securities and
Exchange Commission </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Division of Corporate Finance </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT
STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">100 F Street, N.E. </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Washington, DC 20549 </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT
STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Attn: Tia Jenkins </FONT></P> <P STYLE="font-size:12px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px">&nbsp;</P>
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<TD WIDTH="4%" VALIGN="top" ALIGN="left"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Re:</FONT></TD>
<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">The TJX Companies, Inc. &#151; Responses to Comments on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January&nbsp;28, 2012 and filed March&nbsp;27, 2012, File No.&nbsp;001-04908
</FONT></TD></TR></TABLE> <P STYLE="margin-top:18px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Dear Ms.&nbsp;Jenkins: </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:6px;margin-bottom:0px; text-indent:4%"><FONT
STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">On behalf of The TJX Companies, Inc. (&#147;TJX&#148;), I am writing to respond to the comments on TJX&#146;s Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January&nbsp;28, 2012 by the staff (the &#147;Staff&#148;)
of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the &#147;Commission&#148;) provided in its letter of August&nbsp;30, 2012. For your convenience, I have included each comment prior to the response. </FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:18px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>Form 10-K for the Fiscal Year Ended January&nbsp;28, 2012 </U></FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT
STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>General </U></FONT></P> <P STYLE="font-size:6px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px">&nbsp;</P>
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<TD WIDTH="4%"><FONT SIZE="1">&nbsp;</FONT></TD>
<TD WIDTH="4%" VALIGN="top" ALIGN="left"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">1.</FONT></TD>
<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>Comment</U>: <I>We note the disclosure on page four and statements elsewhere about your opportunistic buying strategy, which appears to involve purchasing items late
in the inventory cycle for both the current and future selling season. Your disclosure on page four also indicates that a small percentage of merchandise is private label merchandise produced for you by third parties. The disclosure under
&#147;Liquidity and Capital Resources &#150; Operating Activities&#148; indicates that the amount of &#147;pack-away inventory&#148; has increased in each of the last two years. With a view to enhanced disclosure in future filings, and to the extent
material, please quantify the amounts of pack-away and private label inventory, describe any known trends in these inventories, and include additional narrative disclosure explaining each purchase strategy within the context of your business model.
Please provide us with proposed draft disclosure, as applicable.</I> </FONT></TD></TR></TABLE> <P STYLE="margin-top:6px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:4%; text-indent:4%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>Response</U>:
</FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:8%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Our overall purchasing strategy is to acquire desirable, quality, branded and other merchandise to offer in our stores at
prices substantially below regular prices for comparable merchandise at department and specialty stores. Our flexible business model permits our buying organization to execute this strategy in a variety of ways, depending on market conditions and
other factors. In future Form 10-K filings, we propose to include additional disclosure about packaway and private label purchases in the Business section to enhance disclosure of these aspects of our purchasing strategy in the context of our
business model, comparable to the disclosures set forth below. </FONT></P>

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 <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:8%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><I>Proposed disclosure with respect to packaway: </I></FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:6px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:13%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">We buy some merchandise that is available in the market with the intent to store that inventory for sale typically in future selling
seasons. We generally make these purchases, referred to as packaway, in response to opportunities in the marketplace to buy merchandise we believe has the right combination of brand, fashion, quality and price, to supplement the product we expect to
purchase later for those future seasons. </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:8%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><I>Proposed disclosure with respect to private label: </I></FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:6px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:13%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">We develop some merchandise that is produced for us under in-house and licensed brands. We generally acquire this type of merchandise,
referred to as private label, to supplement the depth or fill gaps in assortment of the product we offer. </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:8%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">We respectfully
advise the Staff that we do not intend to quantify the amounts of packaway or private label merchandise in future filings as part of our enhanced disclosure. While we use these types of purchases as part of our overall buying strategy, we do not
record inventory according to these categories on a consolidated basis and we do not believe this information is material to investors. As noted in the comment letter, we had identified an increase in packaway inventory as a factor describing
year-over-year changes in a single line item at various points in time&#151;that is, changes in our merchandise inventories shown in our fiscal 2011 and 2012 Statements of Cash Flows &#151;based on information available to us. However, on an ongoing
basis, inventories are affected by various factors including, among other things, the substantial growth in our business and the rate of inventory turns. </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:8%"><FONT
STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Furthermore, we believe both the amount of packaway inventory and the amount of private label inventory shipped to our stores annually have remained relatively consistent in the last two fiscal years when
considered as a percentage of the overall inventory shipped to our stores annually. We do not believe that either our packaway inventory or our private label inventory during the last two fiscal years reflected any known trends of the type
identified under Regulation S-K, Item&nbsp;303, including any that would or were reasonably likely to have resulted in a material change in our liquidity. We do not currently know of any such trends with respect to packaway or private label
inventories, nor do we believe that quantification of packaway or private label is material to an understanding of our business taken as a whole. We remain mindful of our obligations under Regulation S-K for future filings, including disclosure of
any such known trends or material business practices relating to working capital. </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:18px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>Consolidated Statements of Shareholders&#146; Equity,
page F-6 </U></FONT></P> <P STYLE="font-size:6px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px">&nbsp;</P>
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<TD WIDTH="4%"><FONT SIZE="1">&nbsp;</FONT></TD>
<TD WIDTH="4%" VALIGN="top" ALIGN="left"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">2.</FONT></TD>
<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"> <P ALIGN="left"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>Comment</U>: <I>We note your presentation of the two-for-one stock split as a single line item in your Statement of Stockholders&#146; Equity rather
than retroactively restating the share amounts in this statement. However, we do note that your share amounts in the footnotes </I> </FONT></P></TD></TR></TABLE>

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<TD WIDTH="8%"><FONT SIZE="1">&nbsp;</FONT></TD>
<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">
<I>of your financial statements, specifically the share amounts in Note E, were given retroactive treatment and therefore do not agree to the share amounts in your Statement of Stockholders&#146;
Equity. Please confirm, in future filings, that you will revise your Statement of Stockholders&#146; Equity to give retroactive effect for the two-for-one stock split to all shares outstanding pursuant to SAB Topic 4:C.</I> </FONT></TD></TR></TABLE>
<P STYLE="margin-top:6px;margin-bottom:0px; margin-left:8%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2"><U>Response</U>: In future filings, we will revise our Statement of Stockholders&#146; Equity to give retroactive effect for the
two-for-one stock split to all shares outstanding. We respectfully advise the Staff that while SAB Topic 4:C requires retroactive presentation of the two-for-one stock split on the Balance Sheet (as the stock split occurred after the Balance Sheet
date but before financial statements were issued), it does not discuss the treatment of prior share information on the Statement of Shareholder&#146;s Equity. After careful consideration of the alternative presentations, we decided to show the split
as a transaction on the Statement of Stockholders&#146; Equity to provide a clear indication of the occurrence of the split on the face of the statement, which we believed could be helpful for investors. </FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px" ALIGN="center"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">*&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;*&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
&nbsp;&nbsp;* </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px; text-indent:4%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">As requested, TJX hereby acknowledges that: (i)&nbsp;TJX is responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the
disclosure in the filings; (ii)&nbsp;Staff comments or changes to disclosure in response to Staff comments do not foreclose the Commission from taking any action with respect to the filings; and (iii)&nbsp;TJX&nbsp;may not assert&nbsp;Staff comments
as a&nbsp;defense in any proceeding initiated by the Commission or any person under the federal securities laws of the United States. </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px" ALIGN="center"><FONT
STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">*&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;*&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;* </FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px; text-indent:4%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Please do not hesitate to call me at (508)&nbsp;390-2777 if you have any questions or require additional information. </FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:18px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Sincerely, </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">/s/ Ann McCauley </FONT></P>
<P STYLE="margin-top:12px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Ann McCauley </FONT></P> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Executive Vice
President&nbsp;&amp; General Counsel </FONT></P> <P STYLE="font-size:18px;margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px">&nbsp;</P>
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<TD WIDTH="4%" VALIGN="top" ALIGN="left"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">cc:</FONT></TD>
<TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Scott Goldenberg </FONT></TD></TR></TABLE> <P STYLE="margin-top:0px;margin-bottom:0px; text-indent:4%"><FONT STYLE="font-family:Times New Roman" SIZE="2">Mary E. Weber,
Esq. </FONT></P>
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