Bed Bath & Beyond Sells Christmas Tree Shops, Linen Holdings

Bed Bath & Beyond has found buyers for its Christmas Tree Shops, Linen Holdings businesses and several distribution centers in deals combining for $250 million as it continues on its turnaround.

The No. 34 retailer, which first acquired Christmas Tree Shops in 2003, is selling all 80 stores and a Massachusetts distribution center to Handil Holdings, LLC, which expects to continue operating them as a stand-alone retail brand. The deal is anticipated to close in November.

It’s selling Linen Holdings to The Linen Group, LLC, an affiliate of Lion Equity Partners. Linen Holdings will merge with Lion Equity portfolio company Riegel Linen. This deal is expected to close this month.

Finally, Bed Bath & Beyond is selling a Florence, N.J., distribution center to an unnamed institutional buyer. This deal is also expected to close this month.

"Today's announcement builds on the purposeful steps we have made throughout the year to simplify our portfolio, unlock capital and create clear strategic focus to accelerate our plans to build our authority in the home, baby, beauty and wellness markets,” said Mark Tritton, Bed Bath & Beyond president and CEO, in a statement. “Customers are responding well to the introduction of our new omni-always services, and we will continue to invest in our digital-first experience with a customer-inspired assortment that makes it easy to feel at home with Bed Bath & Beyond."

Tritton, a former Target exec, has been leading the retailer’s turnaround since he took the helm last November, and the company last month reported it first comp growth since 2016 thanks to its strong digital efforts.

The company has also brought on new leadership to help it navigate the new retail landscape, including Scott Lindblom as chief technology officer, Anu Gupta as chief strategy and transformation officer, and Juan Guerrero as senior VP, chief supply chain officer.