This Beloved Home Store Is Closing 150 Locations, Starting Now
The retailer has already identified the stores that will permanently close their doors.
Decorating a home or apartment is a major undertaking, but once you've accomplished that, there are always the little odds and ends that need replacing. Ordering online is a great option when you need to save time, but there are some household items you like to see and test out in person, whether that's a vacuum cleaner or one of those coveted air fryers. Unfortunately, your options may soon be more limited, as a beloved home store just announced it's shutting down approximately 150 locations, and closures have already begun. Read on to find out which major retailer is shuttering stores.
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Store closures have continued throughout 2022.
Many iconic and much-loved brands have opted to shut down brick-and-mortar locations this year, citing everything from crime to customer buying patterns to underperformance.
CVS has been rapidly closing locations, having announced plans for a "new retail footprint strategy aligned to evolving consumer needs" in Nov. 2021. That new strategy meant the closure of roughly 900 CVS stores over the course of three years, amounting to 300 stores annually. From Dec. 2021 through the beginning of 2022, Rite Aid also had plans to close 63 locations, but in April 2022, plans were amended to include an additional 82 "unprofitable stores."
Walmart made waves this year when it said it would shutter five "underperforming" stores across the country, based on historic and current financial performance. And in April, Kmart confirmed that a recent round of closures left the chain with only three surviving stores in New York, New Jersey, and Florida.
Now, another big chain is closing up shop, leaving its loyal customer base at a loss.
This chain is cutting almost 16 percent of its stores.
If you stock up on "20 percent off" Bed Bath & Beyond coupons, you may want to use them sooner rather than later. In an Aug. 31 press release, the retailer announced plans to close 150 "lower-producing Bed Bath & Beyond banner stores"—and closures are already in motion.
As of May 28, 2022, the company reported it had a total of 955 stores in operation, meaning the most recent spate of closures accounts for roughly 16 percent of its total store count. As a part of the "cost structure initiative" and cost optimization, the retailer will also be laying off roughly 20 percent of its corporate and supply chain workforce.
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The news isn't particularly surprising.
These aren't the first closures for Bed Bath & Beyond. In 2020, the company announced plans to close 200 underperforming stores over the course of two years, and in January, the retailer released a list of 37 stores that would be closing by the end of February, CNBC reported.
Even with the smaller store count, the retailer has continued to struggle, and CNN reported that the latest round of closures and layoffs are an attempt by Bed Bath & Beyond "to rescue itself."
During the second quarter of the fiscal year, the company reported a 26 percent decline in sales when compared with the same quarter last year, according to the press release. In June, Bed Bath & Beyond also reported $358 million in net losses during the first fiscal quarter—a staggering increase from the $51 million total losses recorded in the first quarter of 2021.
Notably, in the latest press release, Bed Bath & Beyond stated it has "secured financing commitments for more than $500 million," which CNN added may help clear up some of these financial woes.
It's unclear which stores will be closing, but product selection will soon look different.
In the press release, Bed Bath & Beyond stated it had "identified" the stores that will be closed, but didn't include specifics on where and when closures would take place. The retailer did, however, announce that remaining stores will feature new (and likely more familiar) merchandise.
According to CNN, former CEO Mark Tritton was ousted by the board in June, after unsuccessful efforts to expand the chain's in-house brands. Starting in Spring 2021, Bed Bath & Beyond launched nine private-label brands, but shoppers didn't recognize the brands, leaving them "disoriented" while they searched for national name brands, CNBC reported.
In the press release, interim CEO Sue Gove said that the retailer will be moving away from this approach and instead return to stocking national brands "to lead with customer preference." It will also introduce direct-to-consumer brands and discontinue one-third of its private brands, namely Haven, Wild Sage, and Studio 3B.
All efforts are "aimed to increase customer engagement, drive traffic, and recapture market share," Gove said in the press release. Mara Sirhal, the new brand president of Bed Bath & Beyond, echoed this, adding that the company is counting on customer's appreciation for the brand.
"There is still an incredible degree of love for Bed Bath & Beyond," Sirhal said on an Aug. 31 call with investors, per CNBC. "We must get back to our rightful place as the home category destination, and our goal is to achieve this by leading with the product and brands our customers want."
