Bed Bath & Beyond files for bankruptcy

Bed Bath & Beyond filed for bankruptcy on Sunday and plans to liquidate all of its stores after struggling to reinvent itself following the new age of online consumerism.

The retail company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections and informed customers in an email on Sunday morning that they will allow "coupons through April 26, accept gift cards through May 8 and process returns or exchanges until May 24 on products bought before April 23," Axios reports.

Bed Bath & Beyond CEO Sue Gove said in a statement that the company will continue to work diligently to "maximize value for the benefit of all stakeholders."

"Millions of customers have trusted us through the most important milestones in their lives — from going to college to getting married, settling into a new home to having a baby," Gove said. "Our teams have worked with incredible purpose to support and strengthen our beloved banners, Bed Bath & Beyond and buybuy BABY. We deeply appreciate our associates, customers, partners, and the communities we serve, and we remain steadfastly determined to serve them throughout this process."

The announcement comes after years of failed attempts at trying to salvage their brand by reinventing their marketing strategy in the new age of online consumerism, competing against retail giants that sell similar goods and services such as Amazon, Target, and Walmart.

In a written analysis on Sunday, GlobalData retail analyst Neil Saunders said, "Bed Bath and Beyond has finally succumbed to the fact its business is broken and filed for bankruptcy," according to Axios.

"While management refused to go down without a fight, and explored every option to avoid bankruptcy, they simply could not defy gravity forever," he explained.

In February, Bed Bath & Beyond struck a deal with Hudson Bay Capital Management in a last-ditch effort to try and salvage the company through a complex financial strategy, but the deal fell through, according to Axios.

In 2019, the company known for selling bedding and household items hired former Target chief merchandising officer Mark Tritton to help reinvent Bed Bath & Beyond but Tritton was ousted in 2022 after he terminated the company's 20 percent off coupons which reportedly lost their most loyal customers, the outlet reports.

Bed Bath & Beyond has 360 stores and also owns the company buybuy Baby, which has 120 locations. At the time of Bed Bath & Beyond's annoucement, the company has $5.2 billion in total liabilities and $4.4 billion in assets.

In September 2022, Bed Bath & Beyond chief financial officer Gustavo Arnal committed suicide in Manhattan after the company announced mass layoffs due to their failing brand.