Bed Bath & Beyond to Sell Cost Plus Chain to Private Equity
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. agreed to sell Cost Plus World Market, bringing in fresh capital.
(Bloomberg) -- Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. agreed to sell Cost Plus World Market, bringing in fresh capital as the home-goods retailer hones its focus on a primary business that got a boost during the pandemic.
The company is selling the chain to Kingswood Capital Management, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm, according to a statement Monday. They didn’t disclose financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close before Bed Bath & Beyond’s fiscal year end in February. Bed Bath & Beyond also approved a new $150 million accelerated share repurchase program.
The sale comes after Bed Bath & Beyond said in July it may generate nearly half a billion dollars through asset divestitures as part of a restructuring program spurred by flagging sales. Bloomberg News reported in June that the makeover might include sales of the Cost Plus World Market and Christmas Tree Shops chains.
Bed Bath & Beyond has attracted droves of quarantined customers as they spruce up their homes during the pandemic. It has coincided with Chief Executive Officer Mark Tritton’s focus on building out its management team, ramping up e-commerce capabilities and focusing on its core business units.
The Cost Plus deal is the latest in a series of “deliberate steps throughout the year to streamline our portfolio and fortify our strategic focus in home, baby and beauty & wellness,” Tritton said in a statement.
Cost Plus began as a store at San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf in 1958 that promoted goods from around the world. It now operates 243 stores selling furniture and other home items. Bed Bath & Beyond purchased the chain in 2012.
Bed Bath & Beyond’s shares fell less than 1% at 9:43 a.m. in New York.
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