Bed, Bath & Beyond Strategy Could Be a Case Study in Retail Recovery

Bed, Bath & Beyond is making a few interesting changes. The retail giant has named a new CEO, Mark Tritton formerly of Target to take the helm of the company in November, and has appeared to be quietly shopping for a buyer for either the whole brand or its sub-brands. While we have come to know the story of retail brand closures and corporate sales all too well, data experts at Placer.ai say that the brand’s recent moves may not mean doom and gloom.

Placer.ai looked into the brand and its sub-brand’s sales and traffic to understand the whole company and its assets. “When you look at Bed, Bath & Beyond traffic, there are year-over-year declines, most notably from the holiday season in 2017 was much stronger than in 2018, and the spring season was much stronger in 2019 than they were in 2018,” Ethan Chernofsky, VP of marketing at Placer.ai, tells GlobeSt.com.

While overall foot traffic trended down, there were instances of increase in traffic to the store, and when looked at from a more macro perspective, the store stills sees significant attention from consumers. “In August, there was an increase in 2019. The first thing that you take from that is that this is a strong brand and it still sees a lot of foot traffic,” says Chernofsky. “There is a really powerful asset here, and with right polishing and the right strategic shifts, it could become a powerhouse once again.”

With that in mind, the shift in leadership is likely a strategic one, and deserving of attention, particularly for retailers looking to reverse a downward trend. “You are probably going to see stores closing, but those stores are likely going to be underperforming or that cannibalize from other locations,” says Chernofsky. “They are going to look at ways to serve the same audience with fewer locations and maximize efficiency. The data shows that this type of approach has a very strong potential.”

Bed, Bath & Beyond is responding to new retail needs, not scrambling in the face of total bankruptcy, as other brands like Sears and Forever 21 have done. “I don’t expect that there will be a firestorm to sell off the brand, like we have seen with other brands,” says Chernofsky. “Instead, and especially because the new CEO is coming from Target, there Is likely going to be a strategic push to take the assets that really work and maximize them.”

Of course, a lot of this is speculation about what Bed, Bath & Beyond is planning, but the data shows that the brand isn’t in a state of disrepair. Now, it is a matter of waiting to see if a large national brand can really turn things around. “The reality is that there is a huge change happening in the broader retail landscape, and that is obviously going to impact a brand like Bed, Bath & Beyond,” says Chernofsky. “The real question is how will the brand adapt and potentially bounce back. The new changes that the new CEO is going to make will likely be around optimization.”