Oct 2 (Reuters) - J. C. Penney Co Inc on Tuesday named Jill Soltau as its new chief executive officer, effective mid-October, ending the department store chain's months-long search to fill the top job.

Soltau joins from fabric and crafts retailer Joann Stores, where she was the president and CEO.

Former Chief Executive Officer Marvin Ellison left J. C. Penney in May to join home improvement chain Lowe's Cos Inc . (Reporting by Soundarya J in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)