Bed Bath & Beyond stores to return in slimmed-down format after Kirklands OKs $25M investment

Bed Bath & Beyond retail stores are coming back — though in smaller form than customers are used to.Kirkland’s Inc.has successfully finalized a $25 million investment deal with Beyond, the parent company of Bed Bath & Beyond, Overstock, Zulily and BuyBuy Baby.As part of the deal, Kirkland’s becomes the exclusive brick-and-mortar operator and licensee for new, smaller-format Bed Bath & Beyond stores, which are expected to launch nationwide beginning later this year.Kirkland’s shareholders overwhelmingly approved the investment, which was announced this past fall — with 97% of the votes cast in favor of issuing common stock shares as part of the agreement.Beyond, formerly known as Overstock.com, acquired Bed Bath & Beyond’s intellectual property after the retailer filed for bankruptcy in April 2023.

Beyond has transitioned Bed Bath & Beyond from a brick-and-mortar retailer into an online-first brand while working on reintroducing physical stores through a partnership with Kirkland’s, the home décor and furnishings retailer.The company also owns online clothing and lifestyle retailer Zulily and recently acquired the global rights to Buy Buy Baby as part of its expansion strategy.Beyond completed an $8 million equity purchase and converted an $8.5 million term loan into common stock following a special shareholder meeting that was held this past Wednesday.

News of the deal was first reported by Chain Store Age.In total, Beyond has now injected $25 million into Kirkland’s and owns approximately 40% of the company’s outstanding shares.“Today marks a pivotal moment for Kirkland’s, as the completion of this transaction and the ongoing value of our strategic partnership with Beyond begin to unlock new drivers of transformation following our efforts over the past year focused on revitalizing the Kirkland’s brand,” , according to Kirkland’s CEO Amy Sullivan.“As we look ahead, together with the Beyond team, we will continue t...