Bed Bath & Beyond files for bankruptcy in US

LONDON: Embattled retail giant Bed Bath & Beyond has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US.

The company says it will “implement an orderly wind down of its business”, including its Buy Buy Baby brand, and close all 475 of its remaining stores by the end of June, the media reported.

It added that it was seeking buyers for some or all of its assets.

The chain, which has faced financial troubles for years, recently said it would cut jobs and close 150 stores, it was reported.

Last month, the company announced that it would sell $300 million worth of its shares, and warned that it might have to file for bankruptcy if the funds were not secured.

The once-popular destination for household goods has struggled to keep up with the rise of online shopping.

Chapter 11 protection postpones a US company’s obligations to its creditors, giving it time to reorganise its debts or sell parts of the business.

In a filing to the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey on Sunday, the retailer said “the past 12 months have undoubtedly been the most difficult and turbulent in Bed Bath & Beyond’s storied history”.

It added that despite “painstaking, creative, and exhaustive efforts to right the ship along the way, Bed Bath & Beyond is simply unable to service its funded debt obligations while simultaneously supplying sufficient inventory to its store locations”, it was reported.

Notices on the Bed Bath & Beyond and Buy Buy Baby websites said the stores “remain open to serve you”, without offering a timeline for when services will cease.