Bed Bath & Beyond files for bankruptcy protection

Bed Bath & Beyond on Sunday filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after a series of last-ditch efforts to raise enough equity to keep the business alive failed at the eleventh hour.

The struggling home goods retailer has been warning of a potential bankruptcy since early January, when it issued a “going concern” notice that it may not have the cash to cover expenses after a dismal holiday season. 

“Bed Bath & Beyond Inc.today announced that it and certain of its subsidiaries filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey to implement an orderly wind down of its businesses while conducting a limited marketing process to solicit interest in one or more sales of some or all of its assets,” a statement Sunday read.

“The Company’s 360 Bed Bath & Beyond and 120 buybuy BABY stores and websites will remain open and continue serving customers as the Company begins its efforts to effectuate the closure of its retail locations.”

Bed Bath has been hanging on by a thread ever since but has refused to go down without a fight. It secured what was then-considered a Hail Mary stock offering in early February that was expected to infuse more than $1 billion in equity into Bed Bath, but the plan faltered and brought in only $360 million, the company said.

At the end of March, Bed Bath announced another stock offering it hoped would bring in $300 million, but that news sent the share price tumbling and it struggled to raise the funds it hoped the offering would provide. As of April 10, the company had sold approximately 100.1 million shares and raised only $48.5 million.

In filings, the company warned if it didn’t raise the anticipated proceeds from the offering, it would likely have to file for bankruptcy protection.

Days after the second stock offering was announced, Bed Bath said it had partnered with liquidator Hilco Global to boost its inventory levels. Under the agreement, Hilco subsidiary ReStore Capital agreed to buy up to $120 million in merchandise from the company’s key suppliers after relationships with Bed Bath’s vendors soured because of its liquidity issues.

However, the plans ultimately proved futile and weren’t enough to keep the lights on.

The retailer has struggled to maintain relationships with its vendors and has been grappling with low inventory levels, lagging sales and a rapidly dwindling cash pile. 

Going into the holiday season, Bed Bath had difficulty keeping its shelves stocked and because of its liquidity issues, some vendors began asking for prepayments, the company said in securities filings. 

CEO Sue Grove had been leading the company through an attempted turnaround she hoped could save the business, but those efforts coincided with high inflation that affected consumer spending while…