NEW YORK – Though the ink is barely dry on Beyond Inc.’s financial partnership with Kirkland’s, work is already underway to resurrect Bed Bath & Beyond at bricks-and-mortar.
During Beyond Inc.’s Investor Event in Manhattan today, executives from both companies offered more insights into what lies ahead for the Bed Bath & Beyond banner in the physical retail world.
Kirkland’s is examining markets where its own chain doesn’t have a particularly strong profile as it considers which stores to convert to the Bed Bath & Beyond neighborhood format.
“We’re looking at the East Coast,” Kirkland’s CEO Amy Sullivan told investors, namechecking New Jersey, in particular.
New Jersey, where the legacy Bed Bath & Beyond company was headquartered, is currently home to six Kirkland’s units: Brick, Rockaway, Deptford Township, Watchung, Marlton and May’s Landing.
Sullivan reiterated that the first five Bed Bath & Beyond conversions will likely open in early 2025. “We’ll pilot, and then we’ll do a fast forward from there.”
Beyond Inc. Executive Chairman Marcus Lemonis said that the converted stores will be reminiscent of the legacy Bed Bath & Beyond chain in its heyday, albeit in a smaller footprint and with a curated product mix.
“We know the customer doesn’t want a new, slick modern-day experience. You should expect these stores to look like they did 15 years ago, with the white formica shelves and the bins,” he added.
The Container Store could bring back BBB first
Beyond Inc’s proposed $40 million partnership with The Container Store still awaits shareholder approval. However, Lemonis said today that revivifying Bed Bath & Beyond’s presence at bricks-and-mortar might “happen at little faster” inside the storage solution chain’s stores.
The Container Store won’t just carry some merchandise from Bed Bath & Beyond’s key categories; its stores stocking BBB merchandise will be co-branded and distinctly merchandised, he said.
“I’m looking to change the planogram (in a way that) clearly acknowledges goods and services for Container Store, with Bed Bath as a complement to that – not as a 1,000-square-foot corner in the store,” he added. “We’re very assertive about what our expectations are.”
Other key takeaways from today’s Investor Event
- Negotiations are underway to bring national brands carried by the legacy Bed Bath & Beyond into assortments at both the converted Kirkland’s and co-branded Container Store locations.
- The Kirkland’s team will be buying for and merchandising all stores that fly the Bed Bath banner, whether they are Kirkland’s conversions, co-brand Container Stores stores or international Bed Bath & Beyond stores.
- The company has secured licensing deals for Bed Bath & Beyond stores in Mexico and is in talks for a similar arrangement in South Korea.
- The Container Store and Kirkland’s deals stipulate that both retailers will be required to clear out their slower-turning inventory on Beyond Inc.’s Overstock.com platform.
- Kirkland’s and The Container Store will also be required to take part in the upcoming Beyond global loyalty program and shift to the Beyond credit card program once their own card partnerships expire.
“We believe that Bed Bath comes back leaner and stronger and physically closer to the customer,” said Lemonis.
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