Bed Bath & Beyond sees sales up for first time in 4 years
Following some high-profile executive moves, namely around own brands, Bed Bath & Beyond is seeing a revival.
The home goods chain reported an increase in same-stores sales by 6% in the second quarter ended Aug. 29 — the company’s first comparable sales growth since the fourth quarter of 2016.
A key note in the company’s report is that it expects to continue to see gains going forward by generating a deeper assortment of product, and building more sourcing and supply chain opportunities around its pursuit of store brands.
Bed Bath & Beyond has made moves to show this pursuit. In July the company named Neil Lick its private brands leader, coming from Williams-Sonoma, and in March, the company named Joe Hartsig, a store brands chief at Walgreens, to its chief merchandising role.
These moves of course follow the appointment of Mark Trtton to be the company’s CEO just a year ago after years with Target.
Bed Bath & Beyond also said it expects to see continued performance as it ramps up its curbside and buy online pickup in-store services, particularly for the holiday season. In the second quarter, the company’s same-store sales were driven by an 89% increase in digital sales, which helped offset a 12% decline in comparable store sales, an area the company hopes to improve with that pursuit of owned brand merchandise.
“We are delighted by the continued strong response to our BOPIS and contactless Curbside Pickup service offerings, and we believe the recent launch of our new Same Day Delivery service will make it even easier to shop with us, as we help families across North America unlock the magic of holidays at home," Tritton said.
“Our growth strategy is unlocking improved financial performance, and the marked improvement in our second quarter financial results reflects the potential of our digital-first, omni-always transformation and our efforts to build a modern, durable platform for success,” he added. “We've taken direct action to stabilize our business, including reducing our cost structure, enhancing our financial flexibility, and investing where it matters most to our customers. At the same time, we have assembled a world-class and experienced leadership team to rebuild our authority in Home and modernize our operations to deliver a truly customer-inspired and omni-always shopping experience.”