CNBC: Burlington Stores Acquires 50 Former Bed Bath & Beyond Leases
Burlington Stores reportedly will acquire 44 former Bed Bath & Beyond leases out of 109 put up for auction as part of bankruptcy proceedings, by far the largest share of these stores, according to court records seen by CNBC. The off-price retailer will pay $12 million for the 44 leases and $1.5 million for another six leases acquired outside the auction.
The leases put up for auction included both Bed Bath & Beyond and BuyBuy Baby locations, though the latter could change hands depending on how the auction for that banner’s assets ends. The stores range in size from 14,000 square feet to 92,000 square feet.
Many of the locations Burlington acquired are in large community centers that also house a Target as an anchor store, Bill Read, EVP of commercial real estate firm Retail Specialists told CNBC. He said they are “some of the best that I’ve seen become available,” and could help Burlington fuel growth during a period of limited commercial real estate availability.
Other major retailers also acquired leases from the auction, including:
- Michael’s: Nine leases for $2.5 million;
- Haverty: Four leases for $468,334;
- Macy’s: One lease for $1.2 million for an upscale location in Winter Park, Fla., for a potential Bloomingdale’s location; and
- Barnes & Noble: One lease for $129,015.
The other 37 leases were won by landlords who will seek new tenants.
In total, Bed Bath & Beyond put up 153 leases for auction and brought in $24.4 million from the 109 that sold. A portion of the proceeds is expected to go to unpaid rents at the locations, while the rest will go toward paying creditors.
Bed Bath & Beyond had 468 leases when it entered bankruptcy in April, according to court documents. The retailer noted that it could hold another wave of auctions, but details regarding when this would happen or how many stores would be included were not provided.
While the retailer’s stores all will find new banners, Bed Bath & Beyond’s name will live on, as Overstock.com rebrands itself in what CEO Jonathan Johnson called “a marriage made in heaven” in an interview with Retail TouchPoints. The digital furniture retailer acquired Bed Bath & Beyond’s IP during the bankruptcy process.
