Bed Bath & Beyond’s bankruptcy was only a matter of time

The writing has been on the wall for Bed Bath & Beyond, and the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sunday.

All 360 Bed Bath & Beyond locations and 120 Buy Buy Baby locations will close “eventually,” per the Wall Street Journal. Sixth Street Partners has offered $240 million in financing to usher the company through liquidation.

The company has struggled for years at this point. Attempts to declutter its stores backfired and shake-ups to its executive leadership couldn’t jumpstart Bed Bath & Beyond from its difficult, low-cash financial position. The final gasps came in January, when the company warned it could file for bankruptcy if it wasn’t able to shore up cash for suppliers and lease agreements.

• On that news, the stock reached its lowest level in roughly 30 years.

Swing and miss: Under former CEO Mark Tritton, Bed Bath & Beyond attempted to whittle down its product selection and lean into private labels early in the pandemic. This was exemplified by its NYC flagship, which opened in July 2021 and prominently featured newly minted private label brands such as Simply Essential, Wild Sage, Nestwell, and Haven.

• At the time, Bed Bath & Beyond planned to spend $250 million over the following three years to remodel stores in a similar fashion.
• However, supply chain shortages caught up to the company. During the 2021 holiday season, it lost out on $100 million in sales due to stock shortages.

Zoom out: Bed Bath & Beyond will now liquidate its remaining stock and has placed its landlords in a difficult position, as they’re dealing with high interest rates that elevate borrowing costs, the WSJ noted.