Bed Bath & Beyond Says This Many Stores May Close By Year End

American chain of domestic merchandise retail stores, Bed Bath and Beyond, has increased the amount of store closures it estimates and now says 60 stores may close by the end of the year.

Bed Bath and Beyond has said that it will be closing approximately 40 Bed Bath & Beyond stores, and 20 stores from its other concepts. Previously the company had expected 40 stores to close.

According to interim CEO Mary Winston, the decision is a result of its work to optimize its fleet.

“With this action we are increasing the profitability of our remaining portfolio, and believe that our remaining fleet will benefit from our renewed focus on driving traffic and operating efficiency,” Winston said.

For the second quarter, Bed Bath and Beyond reported adjusted earnings per share of 34 cents. This was ahead of the 27 cents that analysts were calling for. Sales of $2.2 billion however were below the $2.572 billion that was expected. It was the tenth straight quarter of same-store sales declining as well.
The company also said that it “has made substantial progress toward identifying a permanent CEO.”

Winson said on the earnings call, “We feel good about the progress we are making against our four key near-term priorities, including stabilizing sales and driving top line growth, resetting the cost structure, reviewing and optimizing the Company’s asset base, including the portfolio of retail banners, and refining our organization structure. This work is being done with the support and guidance of the Business Transformation and Strategy Review Committee of the Board and a highly engaged leadership team. I’m even more confident in the tremendous opportunity in front of us.”

She also had said, “Our number one priority is stabilizing our top line and optimizing our sales opportunities. A core component of our sales stabilization efforts and our transformation overall is based on new data-driven insights that we’re using to identify opportunities for improving our customer value proposition. We are committed to providing our customers with value and improved omnichannel shopping experience and a relevant and compelling assortment of products.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) and have not been compensated for this article.