Buybuy Baby, the baby gear retailer owned by Bed Bath & Beyond, has caught the attention of at least two bidders as its parent company works to auction off its assets.
CNBC reported Friday (June 2) that investment firm Ankura Capital Advisors is advising an unnamed bidder and has stated that the party is seeking a financial partner “to help lead the purchase of Buybuy Baby out of the BBBY bankruptcy.” This comes as Buy Buy Baby has remained a bright spot in Bed Bath & Beyond’s otherwise dismal earnings reports in recent years.
The other potential bidder is Babylist, a direct-to-consumer baby registry website. The company generated $290 million in revenue in 2022, claims it is profitable and counts over a million new parent sign-ups each year. CEO Natalie Gordon confirmed to CNBC that Babylist is indeed interested in purchasing the Buybuy Baby trademark and domain.
Ryan Cohen, co-founder Chewy and chair of GameStop, had shown interest in Buy Buy Baby in 2022, and had previously pointed to the baby gear brand as one of the most valuable pieces of Bed Bath & Beyond, saying it could be worth several billion dollars, the report noted.
Bed Bath & Beyond’s bankruptcy auction has been delayed twice, which might signal the company is still trying to drum up interest for its assets. However, Bed Bath & Beyond Chief Financial Officer and Chief Restructuring Officer Holly Etlin stated in bankruptcy filings that the company is doing everything in its power to salvage all or a portion of operations for the benefit of all stakeholders.
Stalking horse bids for the auction are now due on June 8 at 5 p.m. and final bids are now due on June 14. An auction, if necessary, is scheduled for June 16.
It was reported in July 2022, before the bankruptcy of Bed Bath & Beyond, that the retailer was looking to sell Buybuy Baby in order to raise cash amid liquidity concerns.
Six months later, and weeks after Bed Bath & Beyond said its future as a “going concern” was in doubt, it was reported that Buybuy Baby’s fall hadn’t been as dramatic as that of its parent, its sales drop hadn’t been as sharp and it retained a strong position in a “clearly defined” market.
After months of warning about its future, Bed Bath & Beyond declared bankruptcy on April 23 after being unable to secure funding that would have allowed it to stay afloat.
One of the current bidders for Buybuy Baby, Babylist, responded to the bankruptcy by setting up a dedicated email portal to help Bed Bath & Beyond customers move their baby registries to its own platform.
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