Report: Bed Bath & Beyond Bankruptcy Is Imminent

Bed Bath & Beyond is reportedly within days of declaring bankruptcy following a failed fundraising effort.

A Chapter 11 filing by the struggling home goods retailer could come as soon as this weekend, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Wednesday (April 19), citing sources close to the matter.

The company had warned in January that it could seek bankruptcy protection, saying that, given its losses, negative cash flow and cash and liquidity projections, it had “concluded that there is substantial doubt about the company’s ability to continue as a going concern.”

According to the WSJ report, Bed Bath & Beyond had said recently that it needed to sell $300 million in shares by April 26 to stave off bankruptcy. But with the company’s stock closing Wednesday at 46 cents, the odds of raising that much money in a week are long.

The retailer had raised less than 25% of the amount it needs as of April 10, the report said. PYMNTS has contacted Bed Bath & Beyond for comment but has not yet received a reply.

Earlier this month, the company teamed up with credit-focused investment manager ReStore Capital to launch a vendor consignment program.

The collaboration will see ReStore Capital purchase up to $120 million in merchandise from Bed Bath & Beyond’s key suppliers, on a revolving basis, to increase the availability of merchandise at Bed Bath & Beyond and its buybuy Baby business.

“Our new vendor consignment program enables us to increase our inventory position in top items that customers are buying and improve the customer experience,” Bed Bath & Beyond President and CEO Sue Gove said in a news release. “This capital-light solution can allow us to strengthen merchandise availability and better fulfill demand.”

PYMNTS wrote about Bed Bath & Beyond’s struggles in January, noting that “the demise of the 52-year-old retailer has caught many by surprise as the chain had been a category stalwart since its founding in the early 1970s and subsequent expansion into its buybuy Baby and Harmon brands.”

But a lot has changed in those 52 years, most notably the rise of Amazon, which now dominates the eCommerce and home delivery space and now counts furniture and home furnishing among its top three categories, according to PYMNTS data.

On a call with investors earlier this year, Gove stopped short of mentioning her company’s digital shortcomings, but “she did tell investors that the beleaguered brand recognized and embraced the fact that its customers shop differently today, saying they visit stores less frequently,” PYMNTS wrote.

“They want an omni experience that we are committed to deliver,” Gove said. “Ease of shopping is critical, and we are committed to delivering such services as BOPIS and same day shipping … and we are listening to our customers and are swiftly enacting improvements to their experience.”

For all PYMNTS retail coverage, subscribe to the daily Retail Newsletter.