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Shares of Bed Bath & Beyond lost nearly a quarter of their value Wednesday after the struggling home goods retailer announced a restructuring that includes store closures, layoffs and a possible stock offering.
The company said it has obtained more than $500 million of new financing and was reducing 20% of its workforce. It plans to close about 150 namesake stores but will keep its BuyBuy Baby chain.
The company did not release a list of stores slated for closure.
Bed Bath & Beyond has four Indianapolis area stores: in Greenwood, Avon, Carmel and Noblesville. It closed two stores in Indianapolis in 2020, one at 8655 N. River Crossing Blvd. and the other at 6010 W. 86th St.
Bed Bath & Beyond also said that it would go back to its original strategy of focusing on national brands instead of pushing its own store labels. That reverses a strategy embraced by its former CEO Mark Tritton, who was ousted in June after less than three years at the helm amid slumping sales and supply chain issues. Executives on a call with analysts on Wednesday vowed that what makes the new approach different is that it would not return to its “stock-it-high” merchandising approach.
Mara Sirhal, executive vice president and brand president for the Bed Bath & Beyond brand division, said on the call that customers have communicated that “national brands are an important part of their shopping experience with us.” The company said it is working closely with its suppliers.
The retailer said Wednesday in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing that it might offer, issue and sell shares of its common stock from time to time. It plans to use the proceeds to pay down its debt, among other uses.
Bed Bath & Beyond, based in Union, New Jersey, has been facing lots of turbulence recently. In mid-August, shareholder activist Ryan Cohen, the billionaire co-founder of online pet-products retailer Chewy Inc., sold his entire stake in Bed Bath & Beyond after buying a big stake just months before and pledging to make big changes.
The company said that it is still searching for a permanent CEO. Board member Sue Gove took over as interim CEO, replacing Tritton. Tritton previously been the chief merchandising officer at Target where the more than 30 new brands he introduced were key in that company’s revitalization.
Chief Operating Office John Hartmann is leaving the company, and it’s eliminating that position.
The company said it expects a decline in comparable sales of 26% in its fiscal second quarter. It is slated to report its final results next month.
Shares fell 24%, or $2.92, to $9.19 in early trading on Wednesday, after closing down more than 9% to $12.11 in regular markets Tuesday.
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Wikipedia says they have 1500+ stores, so closing 10%.
Sounds like that number wasn’t updated after the first round of closures a couple of years ago.
This is good news; ‘glad they are suffering. They were one of the first stores to discontinue Mike “My Pillow” Lindell’s line because he dared to research and expose ballot-collecting discrepancies and other shenanigans in several key cities (and, thus, states) that resulted in our current Mr. Dementia ruining the country one speech at a time.
‘Glad to see nonsensical wokeness causing a business to take a hit.
Sorry, but your pillow guy is full of it. The semi-fascist wing of your party is going down.
You seem to not understand cause and correlation Bob….
Mike Lindell only ended up exposing the 17 convicted republicans who committed voter fraud in 2020…. oops
Obviously, you two nay-sayers haven’t watched Denish D’Sousa’s 2000 Mules.
Bob, go ahead and Google Denish D’Sousa right now. His book, 2000 Mules, was just pulled by his publisher because of “significant errors”. You MAGA people really look up every conspiracy lunatic you can lol. It’s so sad you truly believe in an alternate reality.
Really, Wesley?
Let’s say only 25% of the material in Dinesh’s book and/or movie is accurate and truthful. (I have no idea as to a percentage; I pulled that out of thin air.)
If only 25% is true, do you think that 25% of election/ballot fraud should be swept under the rug and ignored just because you hate Donald Trump and love those career politicians who couldn’t earn an honest living in the private sector if their lives depended on it; those who are hellbent on controlling every aspect of your life and mine…and bankrupting the country even further in the process?
Actually Wesley it was pulled for a publishing error. The articles I read do not indicate an author error.