If you’re a legacy brick and mortar retailer selling discount furniture and other home wares, chances are you’ve had a pretty rough couple of years.
Take, for example, the bleak state of Christmas Tree Shops, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Tuesday Morning. Each filed for bankruptcy at some point over the last couple of years, with mixed results.
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While Christmas Tree Shops and Tuesday Morning moved forward with liquidation and store closures, Bed Bath and Beyond has largely been able to hold on, thanks to a buyout plan by rival furniture retailer Overstock.com.
The main difference between the two brands, of course, is that Bed Bath and Beyond was mostly a brick and mortar operation with a large, costly footprint across suburban areas of the United States. Overstock.com, as its name suggests, was an entirely online operation with less overhead cost and far more agility.
Such agility came in handy during and after the pandemic, when most retailers were forced to shutter for a period of time while folks stayed at home. In person stores struggled and sputtered with less foot traffic. Online retailers, like Overstock and Wayfair, however, soared as people looked around their homes and decided it was finally time for a new couch or patio set.
A man loads boxes on a truck for shipment from an Overstock.com warehouse in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Overstock.com bought Bed Bath and Beyond
But Overstock.com actually hasn’t been known as such in quite some time. In 2023, the online retailer agreed to buy out the beleaguered Bed Bath and Beyond, acquiring its name and intellectual property assets.
The deal, which went through in June, was worth about $21.5 million and was finalized just as Bed Bath and Beyond closed its doors.
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By October, the company had rebranded as Beyond, Inc., and announced similar plans to relaunch Zulily, a children’s brand, by Q2 of 2024.
And it’s back from the dead
And in mid July, Beyond, Inc. announced Overstock would relaunch as its own brand, officially terming it the Grand Reopening.
Overstock will once again gain its very own standalone website, which looks unrelated to Bed Bath and Beyond’s. The thinking behind this is to target a different demographic than might otherwise be attracted to Bed Bath and Beyond, ostensibly in a higher income bracket.
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Similar to its old site, the new Overstock site will include goods from closeouts, liquidation, factory direct, and reverse logistics merchandise. The new site will offer wares beyond home furnishings, including:
Indoor and outdoor furnitureApparel FootwearRugsDecorLightingJewelry and watchesSports and entertainment collectiblesHome improvementLuggageStorage and organizersKids and babyPet goods
“Overstock.com has built a legacy on selling those types of products,” Marcus Lemonis, executive chairman of Beyond Inc., said. “And when you try to convince people that a new brand is going to do the same thing, you lose them. Turning Overstock.com back on will not only allow Bed Bath & Beyond to expand its existing assortment and hone in on its historical legacy success, but it allows Overstock to do the same.”
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