While many retail businesses are expected to close up shop this year, Bed Bath & Beyond is pushing forward with plans to bring back physical stores in 2025. Following its 2023 bankruptcy, the big-box retailer has only been accessible to shoppers online. But all of that is about to change now that the brand’s parent company, Beyond, Inc., has resolved a sizable investment deal with Kirkland’s Home. Here’s everything you need to know about Bed Bath & Beyond’s highly anticipated comeback.
RELATED: T.J. Maxx Is Set to Explode in Popularity This Year—Here's Why.
Kirkland’s finalizes $25 million agreement with Beyond, Inc.
The ink has dried on Kirkland’s $25 million deal with Beyond, Inc., who now owns “approximately 40 percent of Kirkland’s outstanding shares of common stock”—an agreement 97 percent of shareholders voted in favor of.
The press release states that Beyond also finalized an $8 million equity purchase and the conversion of a $8.5 million convertible term loan. Details were ironed out during a speciality shareholder meeting on Feb. 5.
"Today marks a pivotal moment for Kirkland's, as the completion of this transaction and ongoing value of our strategic partnership with Beyond begin to unlock new drivers of transformation following our efforts over the past year focused on revitalizing the Kirkland's brand,” Kirkland’s CEO Amy Sullivan said in a statement.
Sullivan went on to list three initiatives under their strategic partnership, including “reengaging our core customer, refocusing our product assortment, and strengthening our omni-channel capabilities.”
The first Bed Bath & Beyond store will open in 2025.
A location has yet to be announced, but Kirkland’s confirmed it’s breaking ground on its first brick-and-mortar Bed Bath & Beyond store, with plans to be open for business later this year.
“As we look ahead, together with the Beyond team we will continue to leverage Kirkland's core strengths including our Merchandising, Store Operations and Supply Chain expertise and infrastructure to build a cohesive omni-channel strategy for Beyond's portfolio of iconic brands,” continued Sullivan.
“Plans are underway for our first Bed Bath & Beyond store opening later this year, and we look forward to continuing to explore opportunities to maximize the value of our partnership. We enter fiscal 2025 with additional capital, new opportunities for growth and an intense focus on aggressively addressing underperforming assets and delivering improved profitability."
Retail Dive previously reported that these neighborhood stores would range from 7,000 to 15,000 square feet.
The news comes on the heels of Beyond’s $40 million “preferred equity transaction” with The Container Store in Oct. 2024. The seismic investment grants Bed Bath & Beyond retail space in all of The Container Store’s 102 locations to sell co-branded kitchen, bath, and bedroom products, according to the press release.
RELATED: These Are All the Macy's Locations Closing in 2025.
What does this mean for Beyond, Inc.’s other brands?
Beyond’s portfolio includes marquee home and clothing retailers like Zulily, Overstock, and Buy Buy Baby, which the parent company acquired for $5 million earlier this month. (Buy Buy Baby was previously owned by Bed Bath & Beyond but was forced to shutter all store locations amid Bed Bath & Beyond’s 2023 bankruptcy filing.)
With Bed Bath & Beyond’s comeback within reach, the focus is now shifting to Buy Buy Baby’s storefront resurgence. Beyond executive chairman Marcus Lemonis said, with the help of Kirkland’s, Buy Buy Baby could reopen on its own or be integrated into Bed Bath & Beyond’s stores.
"Bed Bath & Beyond and Buy Buy Baby have historically been synonymous with supporting families, their homes, and all of life’s milestones. Our goal is to go beyond the traditional omnichannel mindset, focusing on the four corners of the property, and the four walls of the home. It is our objective to help homeowners enhance, protect, and unlock the value of their most important assets and information related to their homes and lives,” he said in the release.
As of this reporting, Overstock and Zulily are still operating exclusively online.
