Bed Bath & Beyond Announce Closure of 200 Stores Due To COIVD-19

The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed another victim. Bed Bath & Beyond has just announced the closing of 200 of their stores.

The popular home goods retail store, Bed Bath & Beyond, just announced this week that they will be closing 200 of their stores, but not all at once. The closings, due to poor in-store sales during the pandemic, will be staggered over the next two years.

Bed Bath & Beyond operates 1000 stores across the country, so the closings will basically affect 1 in 5 of their locations.

According to a news release put out on Wednesday (July 8), the company reported a loss of 49 percent of net sales during March, April and May of this year, compared to the same quarter last year. The losses took place as the pandemic was ramping up, and stores were forced to close for almost three months.

On the bright side, the company also reported that their net sales from digital channels increased by 82 percent, while their in-store sales fell by 77 percent.

Mark Tritton, the Bed Bath & Beyond CEO, issued a statement on the future of the company going forward:

From the beginning of this crisis, we have taken measured, purposeful steps to help keep our people safe and our customers serviced, and we are proud of the way our teams have navigated this unprecedented challenge with speed and agility. At the same time, our actions to strengthen our financial position and liquidity are enhancing our flexibility and capacity to invest and rebuild our business for long-term success.

Bed Bath & Beyond has two local locations, on Sugar Hollow Road in Danbury, and on Candlewood Lake Road in Brookfield. It hasn't been announced yet which store locations will be closing, so stay tuned.