Iconic retail brand has a new life after bankruptcy shutdown

Death for a retailer no longer means what it once did.

It used to be that when a chain like Ames, Filenes, Caldor, or Bradlees, shut down after a bankruptcy filing, they stayed dead. That's no longer the case for many bankruptcy filings as the value of brands — even ones like Bed Bath & Beyond which spent years chasing customers away — still have strong value.

That has made well-known retail chains a bit like horror movie villains. Sure, they cut Jason Vorhees into pieces, burned the pieces, and buried the ash in hundreds of places, but that's not enough to keep a bad man down.

Related: Popular mall retailer shuts down abruptly after bankruptcy filing

When there's money to be made and value to be extracted from vague nostalgia, there seem to be buyers ready to snatch them up and put them to use. In many cases, the new owner brings back a digital version of a brick-and-mortar chain that uses many of the same vendors and meets the same needs for customers.

In other cases, the brand simply gets tacked onto something else that's not really reflective of what the company once was. Beyond, the former Overstock.com, has sort of done both with its purchase of Bed Bath & Beyond's intellectual property.

The company briefly took on the Bed Bath & Beyond name before rebranding as Beyond ad making Overstock and Bed Bath & Beyond brands operating under the same corporate umbrella. 

Beyond has a multibrand plan     

Beyond wants to become a company that owns multiple brands and operates them separately while maximizing backend synergies. New Bed Bath & Beyond CEO Chandra Holt talked about her plans for the brand during the company's fourth-quarter earnings call.

"I joined the company because I'm passionate about Bed Bath & Beyond, and I'm driven to reestablish its category dominance. It's my goal for Bed Bath & Beyond to be a leader in unified commerce. We aim to create a customer experience that is more seamless than today's traditional omnichannel retailers," she added.

That includes leaning into digital advantages the retailer did not have as a brick-and-mortar chain.

"We also plan to introduce tailored experiences for purchase occasions that are adjacent to our core Bed Bath & Beyond offerings, such as Baby & Beyond, Kids & Beyond, College Living, and Wamsutta.com. Baby & Beyond is expected to be our first specialized experience, and we are excited about the upside because we know many Bed Bath & Beyond customers frequently cross-shop the baby category," she added.

Beyond buys another big name out of bankruptcy

Beyond wants to be a player across multiple retail brands using what it learns with each company to revive new companies that it buys out of bankruptcy. The company has now purchased the intellectual property and other brand assets of Zulily, the flash sale pioneer and ecommerce retailer. 

"This strategic move was designed to further strengthen Beyond's position in the off-price market, enhancing value for customers on the products they’re looking for. The addition of Zulily will complement Beyond’s suite of brands, including Overstock, which is scheduled to relaunch later this month," the company shared in a release. 

Zulily, an internet pioneer that once had a billion-dollar valuation, abruptly closed on Dec. 20. The company did not communicate any details of its closure to customers. Instead, its website merely shared a note saying it was down for maintenance. 

Beyond will only be buying certain pieces of the Zulily business.

"As part of the transaction, Beyond, Inc. acquires certain intellectual property assets related to the Zulily brand, including website and domain names, trademarks, tradenames, customer database, social media accounts, software to run the Zulily website, and goodwill associated with the brand. The transaction excludes all of Zulily’s liabilities, liens, and debts.," the company shared.

That means that the new owner won't be responsible for unfilled orders from the previous company.

Beyond has paid $4.5 million for the assets it has purchased which the company paid for with cash on hand.