Bed Bath & Beyond, the home goods retailer, has filed for bankruptcy after multiple failed attempts to keep operations running. The company has detailed its descent into insolvency in a series of court filings, but has stated its intention to continue marketing the business to avoid outright liquidation. Bed Bath & Beyond’s chief financial officer and chief restructuring officer Holly Etlin has written that the company has pulled off long-shot transactions several times in the past six months, giving it confidence in its ability to do so again. The company is hoping a buyer will be willing to purchase either Bed Bath & Beyond or Buy Buy Baby as standalone businesses, buy the brands’ intellectual property, and perhaps take on a few of their better performing stores.
Shares of the company closed about 36% lower on Monday, giving it a market value of around $88m. Whatever money Bed Bath is able to generate in its liquidation and sale efforts will go to its secured creditors and bondholders, while its shareholders will be “wiped out.” Bed Bath & Beyond is already in the process of starting liquidation sales at its stores but said it will “pivot away” from store closings if it secures a successful sale.
The company had about $4.4bn in assets and $5.2bn in debts, as of late November. The valuation of the company and its intellectual property is unclear. In its most recent quarterly securities filing, the retailer noted the intangible value of trade names and trademarks was just $13.4m. The likelihood of finding a buyer will come down to how much Bed Bath and Buy Buy Baby’s names are worth. The company has asked the courts to approve a bid deadline of May 28 and an auction date for June 2.
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