Companies and Brands

Bed Bath & Beyond's Wild Ride

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: February 20, 2023 11:54 am

Bed Bath & Beyond was supposed to go bankrupt. . Instead, it got a $1 billion aid package anchored by preferred stock. It then told long-suffering suppliers it could pay them. That act may come too late. Lack of payment cut inventory availability for the holiday season. However, the retailer is still standing after what must have been a grim holiday season.

Bed Bath has only a one in 10 chance of survival. Its store footprint has grown so small that shoppers who could once go to a store easily will have to decide whether they want to travel long distances. And the fact that they could pay off inventory does not mean there will be money to buy inventory in the future.

Morale among employees does count for something. First, workers who can find jobs elsewhere will. Second, the “quiet quitting” has gone on elsewhere since the pandemic began. Bed Bath would be a likely place for this to happen.

Tyler Dischinger, counsel in Buchanan’s bankruptcy practice group in Pittsburgh, told Yahoo! Finance that “Cost-cutting and financial moves have bought them some time, but it’s too early to see if it’s a little too late,”

The stock price does count for something. It has gyrated wildly for nearly a year. Some of this has been speculation. However, the overall trend is still down. The stock was $28 last March. Today, it is a penny stock at $1.80. Thousands of investors took large losses along the way.

The rescue package is too small. Bed Bath will look like JP Penney or Sears soon. Larger bricks and mortar retailers and, of course, Amazon will have trampled it.

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