A lighthearted comedy starring Tina Fey and Paul Rudd from 2013, "Admission," captured some of the drama that comes with college admissions and rejections.
At one quirky point in the movie, Fey, who plays Princeton admissions officer Portia Nathan, asks a high school senior and also her son, "So, did you remember to bring your toothbrush?"
This is a premise retailers like Bed Bath and Beyond (BBBY) are trying to cash in on as "Decision Day" posts flood social media.
The day when high school seniors learn which colleges and universities have accepted them. And what follows is the chaos of moving to college, lock, stock and barrel.
President of Bowling Green State University Rodney K. Rogers tweeted a welcome post for the incoming class of 2026.
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College Favorite
"Bed Bath & Beyond has long been a favorite destination for the college set, trusted for having all the essential products and services needed to outfit a dorm room or off-campus apartment," said Executive Vice President and Chief Customer Officer Rafeh Masood at Bed Bath & Beyond in a statement.
The home-goods retailer is offering a 20% discount on every student purchase starting May 1 through September 30.
"Whether it's bedding or bath accessories, storage and organization solutions, kitchen essentials or home decor, offers a range of products, all at accessible prices, to ensure students are equipped for on- or off-campus living," added Masood.
The New Jersey retailer offers affordable bedding, bath, storage and small appliances needed during the four years of college.
Bed Bath & Beyond has also curated an online checklist to help students during this crucial phase of transition.
The company will offer same day delivery like rival Amazon (AMZN) to help parents and students in case they do not have a car or a rental at their doorstep.
In the coming few weeks, Bed Bath and Beyond's "Pack and Hold" initiative will let students shop locally or online and pick up items when needed, at a store near campus.
Poor Financial Health
The company reported a 12% decline in same-store sales and swung to a loss of $159 million for the quarter ended February 26.
"Macroeconomic factors, such as the disruption of the global supply chain, the Omicron variant, as well as the geopolitical turbulence weighing on consumer confidence," said Bed Bath & Beyond President and Chief Executive Mark Tritton in a statement.
"[That has] uncovered more vulnerabilities than we could have foreseen at this stage of our transformation, as we completely rebuild the foundation of our business."
The retailer has seen interest slow as time has gone on.
Bed Bath and Beyond same store sales fell 15% and 9% in comparison to 2020 and 2019 respectively.
"The lack of available inventory to sell proved to be a continuing impediment to sales through the remainder of the fourth quarter and into the early part of fiscal 2022," Tritton added.
Net sales dropped 22% to $2 billion from $2.61 billion in the same period a year ago.
"Sales through the fourth quarter suffered an impact of $175 million as a result of the ongoing lack of in-stock and available to sell merchandise in our Bed Bath banner," Tritton said during the company's earnings call.
The retail giant is reportedly looking to sell its Buybuy Baby business, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.
"We have been talking to the street and maybe some time around Buybuy Baby, as an opportunity that is not showing its true value to a shareholder, and how do we unlock that?" Tritton said in the latest earnings call.
"And so the work began, and in January, our board agreed to create a strategic committee solely focused on what is the best way of unlocking the value of the Buybuy Baby asset, which is a growth accelerator asset," Tritton added.
Buybuy Baby clocked roughly $1.4 billion in sales for fiscal 2021.
Potential takers include "private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management and a special-purpose acquisition company led by Philip Krim," The Journal reported.
The company said it plans to open 20 to 25 new Buybuy Baby stores this year.
